Ethel & Ernest

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It was a quick read - it took me about half an hour - so I would recommend it if you like comic strips that are well drawn and are rather amusing. As economic and political climates change and war comes and goes it becomes clear that they each have their own peculiar wisdom and short-sightedness, and to see the world through their eyes and their bickering is a delight. This is a great, whimsical character study of a common married couple as well as an excellent social study of British working-class morals and beliefs in the twentieth century. It tells the story of the lives of Briggs' parents from their first meeting in 1928 to their deaths in 1971. It triggered too haunting memories of wartime when I was a three year old cowering in an Anderson shelter in the back garden.

Read about how Ethel always fusses over him as mothers always will, while Ernest moderates as fathers always will. There's good memories, like when you played games or sang silly songs as a child, went down to the beach or moved up to "big" school.

For his contribution as a children's illustrator Briggs was a runner-up for the Hans Christian Andersen Award in 1984. It's based on the story of Briggs's parents, their life in London from the 1930s until the the early 1970s. It captures vividly the ageing of loved ones, their loss and the resulting unfillable void for those left behind. I believe since they didn't have the luxury to attend University they never experience the option of having a choice in your career. Ogni capitolo è scandito da decenni (‘30-‘40; ‘40-‘50; ‘50-‘60; ‘60-‘70) per poi giungere al capitolo finale, che comprende solo il 1970-1971.

pero que quienes la vimos recordamos muy nítidamente los primeros minutos en los que, a modo casi de cortometraje paralelo al film, se narra la vida de un matrimonio en unas pocas escenas y se condensa en algunos minutos una preciosa e inolvidable historia de amor. The BOOK has been inscribed by the author to the title page : 'For Anthony May, with best wishes, Raymond Briggs, 23 March 2001'. The absence of the author from the pages is intriguing to me, the way he keeps himself very peripheral to his own story and really focused in on his parents, their particular way of moving through time, working, delighting, worrying, arguing and making up. They don't believe he will be making any money and they don't understand the difference between pursuing what you love versus getting a typical 9-5 job and be bored and resenting every moment of that. The love Ethel and Ernest have for each other is epic and perhaps even more so given that Briggs is focusing on the mundane, every-day stuff of life (even during wartime).Pues, ahora que he leído esta novela gráfica, me resulta difícil creer que quienes escribieran aquella escena no se inspirasen en este librito: como mínimo coincide que ambas historias son las postales que resumen una vida a lo largo de las décadas y están contadas desde una nostalgia dulcísima y un humor lleno de ternura. Whilst the story was heart-warming and quite tender in places, I couldn't help but notice the political discrepancies between them. This graphic memoir/ biography is about the author's parents from the time they met in the 1920s until their deaths in the 1970s.