Running Commentary. By Fougasse. (Methuen. 6s.)
New Pocket Cartoons. By Osbert Lancaster. (John Murray. 2s. 6d.)
THE love of laughter is as sensible as it is general, for laughter like sneezing relieves tension and clears the mind. We should, therefore, be specially grateful to the publishers who have pre- sented us in these trying times, and on the eve of Christmas, with two of our leading cartoonists in handy book form. Fougasse is very much himself ; that is to say, he exploits good humour and leaves satire out of it. The serial drawings in which he specialises continue, in war as in peace, to plot out foibles with cunning and patience. Mr. Osbert Lancaster's laughter has a sharper note. His pocket cartoons in the Daily Express are already well known, and it is good to have this artist safely clamped down between cloth boards. Mr. Lancaster is particu- larly good with the Germans, for he manages to make them both fearful and ridiculous. But he is the enemy of every sort of sole-nn nonsense, whether home-bred or foreign. What the Nazis think of him is shown in a review from Angriff printed on the wrapper ; and indeed they have reason to fear him, for his pen is keen and his thoughts "dangerous." One of his most formidable creations is the National Socialist heroine, Frau Katzenjammer. Perhaps the best possible punishment for Herr Doktor Rosenberg would be the enforced close company of this dogged lady.
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