Amazon.com Book Description (ISBN 0714844837, Hardcover)

Jean-Jacques Semp+- is one of the most successful andbest-loved cartoonists in the world, best known for his cartoons that havegraced the covers and pages of the New Yorker for decades.Semp+- haspublished numerous collections of his work in his native France, but neverbefore have they been translated into English.Phaidon Press is delightedto present the first English translated publication of NOTHING IS SIMPLE byJean-Jacques Semp+-, one of four witty and beautifully illustratedcollections from this widely adored cartoonist.NOTHING IS SIMPLE was the first book of Semp+- drawings, originallypublished in 1962. In this classic Semp+- collection, we find a timelessmix of everyday moments and surreal situations, captured withcharacteristic playfulness and attention to detail.Semp+-'s world ispopulated by nosy neighbors, mischievous schoolboys and thwarted lovers, bysnooty holidaymakers and crowds of frustrated commuters in the big city. In one classic series, a woman looks horrified to witness an accidentinvolving a truck, a restaurant-front and several bystander, and rushes toher friend's house to report, not of the accident, but the fact that shesaw her friend's husband stepping out of a nearby bar with another woman. These inimitable drawings and watercolors, accompanied by perfectly judgeddeadpan captions, are fresh, engaging and hilarious. Semp+-'s work, once just the one-of-a-kind illustrations that appearedbefore our eyes in delightful yet sporadic moments, can now be brought homeas an enchanting part of every family's library.NOTHING IS SIMPLE, justone volume of four, includes more than 100 illustrations, both pen and ink,with captions translated by Anthea Bell.Professionals, children, andadults of any age will fall in love with these charming books.