Yuri Gagarin

Surveys show that Yuri Gagarin is the main hero of Russian history of the 20th century. It’s all the more surprising that over many years in Russia, no adequate—open, objective, modernized—biography of the first cosmonaut has been created. “Yuri Gagarin” by Lev Danilkin is an attempt—if such a thing is possible—to produce the “final” biography that closes all the gaps of the “Red Icarus” life; it is the most complete chronicle of his life to date, and also a reflection on what the Gagarin myth and the idea of “Gagarin” really are. Interviews with witnesses and a thorough revision of Russian and foreign sources helped the author answer key questions.

Was Gagarin merely the embodiment of Soviet design—or did he really possess some unique qualities? What truly happened on April 12, 1961? How did the first cosmonaut cope with “Gagarin-mania,” the status of the most famous person on the planet? What is Gagarin: a product of the regime and his time—or its mirror and justification? Was there a conflict between him and the Soviet political leadership? What was the real cause of his death? Was his success just luck, the result of conscious “life-building,” or the fulfillment of some higher plan? What would have happened to Gagarin and the USSR if the “first citizen of the Universe” hadn’t died in March 1968 and had lived to this day?

The book is dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the first space flight.