I Can Not Draw

Peng

This book is the most enormous fun, and that’s something we all need in our lives right now. At first sight, it looks like something intended for children, but there’s more detail than you’d find in books for the very young and the subjects are also somehow more mature. There’s a wry sense of humour which is what perhaps gives it its appeal for the older reader. Peng is a cartoonist and has the caricaturist’s eye for expression and detail, all of which are expressed simply.

The subjects are people and animals so, if you were looking for still lifes, look elsewhere. Instructions are simple and this is a refreshingly straightforward guide that’s most definitely left-field. You may not want to draw cartoons, or even follow Peng’s broad-brush style, but you can learn a lot about attitudes and expressions.You may even want to work on it with your children. Thames & Hudson £14.99, 160 pages (P/B) ISBN 9780500652428