Not exactly space, but very much space related: Ignition! An informal history of liquid rocket propellants, by John D Clark. It's a damn good book that explains complex topics in a way that anyone can understand, but with enough detail that you can learn from it. With, of course, plenty of stories of explosions (the book takes place from ~1890-1970, so for all the liquid fuels that have been tried in that time, most have blown up).