Ethel and Ernest

Raymond Briggs has used his parents in his work before. They were the archetypes for the bemused elderly couple in his fable of nuclear war, When The Wind Blows, and in lighter vein his father has been the model for Father Christmas. But in this latest work Briggs takes it a step further in writing (and, of course, drawing) a cartoon strip biography of his parents marriage from courtship in the twenties to death in the seventies. This tribute to ordinary lives--no affairs, no illness before the end, no regrets--is inevitably a very personal work, but also serves as a fascinating social history. From when they meet as milkman and parlour maid, through the Depression, second world war, childbirth (Briggs himself gets a particularly good cameo role in the sixties, replete with magnificent sideburns), old age and death, we see a world in rapid flux while Ethel and Earnest's loving relationship remains resolutely stable. The drawings are characteristically tender--the scene when his dead mother lies on a hospital trolley is particularly moving--and the simple text gives more than a taste of these people and the times they lived through. Sentimental as well as engaging? Absolutely. But work like this gives sentimentality a good name. --Nick Wroe

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simple and touching - Rated
Like "When the Wind Blows" Briggs has captured the life of a couple prefectly. Despite not having a plot as such, it is a fantastic potted history of the 20th century on a human level. It is also a story of love through the best of times and the worst of times.

The Advantage of being Ernest... - Rated
...A nice house, new furniture, and a lovely wife! What more could anyone want? Although Ernest and his wife were the models for Jim and Hilda in "When the Wind Blows", they are spared the violence and devastation of a nuclear holocaust and allowed to see out their days in peace (despite an ill-placed Morrison shelter almost doing for them during World War 2).

Briggs' portrait of his parents is a strange book - without real plot or narrative, it jumps from one situation to another in a disjointed and unique style, capturing small vignettes of twentieth century life but never quite expanding on them. There is no commentary or moralising, no idyllic or disasterous childhoods, no extolling of the values of family life or solidarity during the Blitz or respect for one's elders - just a series of snapshots of married life, mortgages, ancient washing machines, political disputes (Ernest is a staunch socialist, Ethel an unreconstructed Tory) and hospital endings.

Briggs is probably the best cartoonist Britain has to offer outside politics; his simple drawings have been used for everything from traditional Bogeymen to the horrors of nuclear war, and still retain the fresh innocence that made the "Snowman" so great. It's this style which allows him to make such striking statements, and which got him onto last year's Christmas stamps.

A bit like "Maus" without the backdrop of the Holocaust to focus the attention, it is Briggs' most daring work yet. In the way he has chosen to portray their lives he captures the banality of the lives of Ernests and Ethels everywhere. It's worth a look, but don't expect a simple story.

visual and emotional excellence - Rated
This is illustration at its highest. It tells the story of a couple in the manner of the Bayeux Tapestry, through drawings that capture the heart of the action. However, these drawings also show the personalities of the man and woman and draw the reader into their story. The son has created a loving memorial of his parents. I will never forget some of the drawings in this book.

A MUST for all who want to know about life, love and death. - Rated
A beautiful moving story written by the well known author Raymond Briggs, author of the Snowman. The true story begins as Ethel and Ernest meet. Their love and life together unfolds through a series of beautifully illustrated cartoons. The reader is taken on a journey of life's pleasures and pains, through the war years and beyond.

As a nurse and a lecturer in hospice care I was drawn to the end of the book which portrays first Ethel's dying and death followed by the death of Ernest. The images are so powerful that few words are needed. The inevitability and the pain of death and loss are clearly and sensitively portrayed.

Ethel and Ernest should be available in every school, every church, and every library throughout the world. It must be on the reading list of all health care professionals.

Read this book. You will laugh and you will cry but most of all you will understand a little more of life.

Raymond Briggs at his very best! - Rated
As a child,i experianced Raymonds work in a differient manner to manny a person. This book a sheer masterpiece,exploring depths of illustration many artists have not. The story of his parents was simple,yet in great detail he would describe moments in their lifes that were not major on comparison with the rest of the story. I have loved Raymonds work since i was five.I have written to him ,and in responce,received a letter. Raymonds Work streches the minds of all young poeple alike-Raphael Verrion