Do youself a favour and go out and get Carl Sagan's "Cosmos". Either the book, or the 13 part DVD series. Both are great.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmos:_A_Personal_Voyage
It is probably the best space related series ever produced, (not to mention one of the best non-fiction series ever produced) and still very relevant today even after nearly 30 years. There isn't much in it that needs updating or that is wrong.