Beyond: The Astonishing Story of the First Human to Leave Our Planet and Journey into Space (Hardback)

'Brings to life the space race and the extraordinary story of Yuri Gagarin. Using first-hand testimony, Stephen Walker evokes the personalities, the science and the atmosphere of the time in a history that reads like a thriller' - Anne Applebaum

'The very best account of Yuri Gagarin's pioneering space mission - vivid, thoughtful, and respectful of the characters in the story. A wonderfully rendered story of an epochal event' - Asif Siddiqi, author of The Challenge to Apollo

'Beyond has the exhilaration of a fine thriller, but it is vividly embedded in the historic tensions of the Cold War, and peopled by men and women brought sympathetically, and sometimes tragically, to life' - Colin Thubron

'Suddenly, every previous biography of cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin and his epic Earth-orbiting flight - and there are many - has been superseded ... A spellbinding and completely authoritative account ... It is rare for someone to tell such a monumental story with the narrative skill, research and suspense one usually expects to find in a James Patterson thriller, but this book is a guaranteed gem ... Simply put, Beyond is, in my opinion, the finest, best researched book ever written on the subject and thoroughly deserves the ongoing plaudits of space historians and interested readers alike' - Colin Burgess

'Dramatic and dynamic. Stephen Walker's passion for his subject along with his exceptional research and attention to detail have brought my father's extraordinary journey vividly to life' - Elena Gagarina, daughter of Yuri Gagarin, the world's first spaceman

'Stephen Walker sends us on an exhilarating journey into space. His book is a dramatic tour de force. Exciting, vivid, and at times deeply moving, it also makes a significant contribution to our understanding of early space travel' - Mark Bostridge, author of Florence Nightingale, The Making of an Icon