Today we’re looking at a fresh arrival to the shop: a copy of The Astronauts: the Story of Project Mercury, America's Man-in-Space Program, by Martin Caiden. On its own, it’s an interesting account of the early space race, but a handful of illustrious signatures really cause this particular volume's value to skyrocket. We’ll explore this and other space-adjacent collectables—including science fiction and photographs from the lunar capsules—on this far-out #brattlecast.
Brattlecast #103 - National Geographic
While our travel plans may be indefinitely postponed, a good issue of National Geographic can still take us on a vacation of the mind. The long-running magazine is known for its stunning photos, intricate maps, and absorbing reports from fascinating, far-flung locales. In this episode we’ll talk about its history, which issues are considered the most valuable, and even creative reuses for your old copies. While it’s not exactly scaling Annapurna, collecting National Geographic can be something of an adventure in itself.
Brattlecast #45 - John Ledyard's Voyages
He voyaged with Captain Cook, escaped from college via canoe, and attempted to walk across Russia. But, most importantly for our purposes, he also wrote a plain looking, easily discarded book, some volumes of which contain an extremely valuable map. He's John Ledyard, the most interesting New England character you've never heard of and the author of Captain Cook's Voyages, the book we should all be scouring yard sales for!
