The history of attempting to make "controlled explosion" into something other than an oxymoron.

Ignition!: An Informal History of Liquid Rocket Propellants

By: John Drury Clark Published: 1972 216 Pages

Briefly, what is this book about?

An insider's account of the always exciting, frequently terrifying, attempts to develop the perfect liquid propellant.

What's the author's angle?

Clark was a program director, and he's mostly telling personal stories about the vast effort to find better liquid propellants. His sense of humor is great and his disdain for bureaucratic minutiae is obvious. He's one of those steely-eyed missile men you hear about.

Who should read this book?

People interested in a behind the scenes look at a fascinating period of engineering and discovery.

Specific thoughts: Once We Were Engineers