Walter Hughes wrote exclusively science fiction for
young adults and teenagers, almost all of which involves the career of Chris Godfrey, although the
character ages during the course of the series and is
later replaced as the central character by Tony
Hale. The series began with Blastoff at Woomera
(1958, also published as Blastoff at 0300), a
straightforward tale of an early space mission, although typically for its form the novel manipulates
things to allow for a teenaged astronaut. Godfrey finally reaches the Moon in his third outing, First on
the Moon (1960, also published as Operation Columbus), just ahead of a Russian astronaut whose life he
eventually saves despite the Russian’s treachery.
The establishment of a permanent settlement
leads to further intrigue in Moon Base One (1961,
also published as Outpost on the Moon), but Godfrey soon leaves that behind in favor of trips to
Venus in Expedition Venus (1963) and Mars in Destination Mars (1964). His next adventure was
closer to home: A madman seizes control of an orbiting satellite and threatens to turn its lasers toward Earth in Terror by Satellite (1964). That
diversion is followed by visits to Jupiter in Journey
to Jupiter (1965), which almost ends tragically because of equipment failure and an ailing crew; to
Mercury in Mission to Mercury (1965), which also
involves telepathy; and to Saturn in Spaceship to
Saturn (1967), this longer voyage accomplished by
means of suspended animation. Further adventures
included trips to Neptune, Uranus, and Jupiter, in
novels that were each, to a great extent, variations
of the earlier novels.
Godfrey moves to the sidelines for the balance
of the series. Tony Hale, Space Detective (1973) pits
his intelligence against a comparatively inept villain, as does Murder on Mars (1975). The series
would end with P-K (1986), the 21st installment.
A second series, for even younger readers, consists
of Boy Astronaut (1977), First Family on the Moon
(1979), and School on the Moon (1981). Walters did
a reasonably good job of providing an accurate scientific portrait of the various planets visited by his
astronaut heroes, and a fair job of describing what
space travel might actually be like. He was less successful with his plotting, which became extremely
repetitive late in his career. Although he was never
a critical success, he developed a considerable following, and his books are avidly collected.