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Distributed for Bodleian Library Publishing

Heath Robinson: How to be a Perfect Husband

Heath Robinson (1872–1944) is Britain’s “Gadget King”—master of the art of creating madcap contraptions that made use of ropes, weights, and pulleys to perform relatively simple tasks. Although he trained as a painter and also worked as a book illustrator, Robinson developed his forte with drawings of gadgets that parodied the absurdities of modern life. A true cartoonist, Robinson had a way of getting at the heart of the matter while simultaneously satirizing it mercilessly. He became a household name in Britain, and his popularity continues today.

The cartoons in Heath Robinson: How to be a Perfect Husband provide sage advice for how to succeed in almost all aspects of married life—and, of course, it often features a complicated Robinsonian gadget. The perfect husband, for example, will take advantage of two simple attachments to the garden roller to tend the lawn and entertain the baby simultaneously. Likewise, he can peel onions with no fear of tears using a mirror and construct a cost-effective vacuum cleaner using items found around the house. Most importantly, he will devise a device to help him climb the stairs silently after a late night out with the boys.

A gently satirical collection, this book make a perfect gift for anyone looking to have a laugh at our complicated and increasingly mechanical modern life.
 

128 pages | 120 halftones | 4 3/4 x 7 1/4 | © 2017

Literature and Literary Criticism: Humor


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Table of Contents

Introduction
Selection of a Mate
Courtship and Proposal
The Wedding
Early Married Life
The Young Idea
Sports and Hobbies
Domestic Difficulties
Middle Age and How to Meet it
Conclusion
 

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