I read it as a child. It describes the brilliant and dashing Lancelot Biggs in space trying to please the curmudgeonly skipper of the spaceship he's on. The narrator, whose name escapes me, wonders why Biggs had chosen an aging spaceship such as the one he had asked for. The story revolves around the fact that Biggs was courting the skipper's daughter and needed the old man's blessings to win his bride. This is definitely NOT hard sci-fi, but it is fun and the banter of the characters is marvelous. Biggs is a great character who performs a noble act at the end that I won't disclose. Read it. When I was 12 I read this book at least 10 times.