Laika by Nick Abadzis

Laika was the first dog to go into space, lauched in Sputnik II by the Russians, and this is her story. Abadzis' writing and illustrations are beautiful, it is excellently researched and the framing within the story of the man running the Soviet space programme brings into sharp relief the oppressive context within which the launch took place. Highly recommended, my favourite kind of graphic novel, in the vein of Maus and One Bad Rat.