Yuri's Day - Andrew King

Amazing to see how much history can be distilled into the graphic novel format, a genre otherwise left to the fictional, fantastical domain. And yet this book illustrates just that - fantastical true events that led to one of mankind's greatest achievements. Yuri's Day covers much and holds no punches, opening in pre WW2 Stalinist Russia. Recognition is given to Sergei Korolev as the true hero here and his journey begins in a Siberian gulag. The influences of Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, philosophical pioneer of Russian rocket science, is also documented as well as Gagarin's childhood influences to his adult life. A well researched graphic story of a man (engineer Korolev) and his young protege, Yuri Gagarin, altering the course of history in 1961. An extended historical essay fronts the book, with fascinating details about the origins of Yuri's adventure, and the fate of the early Soviet space programme. Stalin, World War 2, Sputnik, dog's in space, the Cold War... a 'must-have' for space and comic fans, and educational establishments too."