From Yuri Gagarin, 50 Years of Space Flight by Rene Nuijens
Today is Cosmonaut Day! What is Cosmonaut Day? It’s a Russian holiday that celebrates the achievements of those brave men and women (and, we would like to add the dogs, rats, and monkeys who had no choice in the matter) who flew into space. So it’s only natural that on this day my thoughts would return to one of my favorite books from last year’s Photography Book Now competition, Yuri Gagarin, 50 Years of Space Flight. The book looks at the strange, oft-neglected monuments to the Soviet cosmonaut scattered throughout the former USSSR. Now the book’s author, Rene Nuijens, has released a fascinating little video about a would-be cosmonaut and his little red car. We think it’s a marvelous way to celebrate Cosmonaut Day.
