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When the Wind Blows
Raymond Briggs' now famous bestselling comic cartoon book depicts the effects of a nuclear attack on an elderly couple in his usual humorous yet macabre way.
48 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1982
39 people are currently reading
3872 people want to read
About the author
Raymond Briggs
166 books242 followersRaymond Redvers Briggs was an English illustrator, cartoonist, graphic novelist, and author who had achieved critical and popular success among adults and children. He was best known for his story "The Snowman", which is shown every Christmas on British television in cartoon form and on the stage as a musical.
His first three major works, Father Christmas, Father Christmas Goes on Holiday (both featuring a curmudgeonly Father Christmas who complains incessantly about the "blooming snow"), and Fungus the Bogeyman, were in the form of comics rather than the typical children's-book format of separate text and illustrations. The Snowman (1978) was entirely wordless, and illustrated with only pencil crayons. The Snowman became Briggs' best-known work when in 1982 it was made into an Oscar nominated animated cartoon, that has been shown every year since on British television.
Briggs continued to work in a similar format, but with more adult content, in Gentleman Jim (1980), a sombre look at the working class trials of Jim and Hilda Bloggs, closely based on his parents. When the Wind Blows (1982) confronted the trusting, optimistic Bloggs couple with the horror of nuclear war, and was praised in the British House of Commons for its timeliness and originality. The topic was inspired after Briggs watched a Panorama documentary on nuclear contingency planning, and the dense format of the page was inspired by a Swiss publisher's miniature version of Father Christmas. This book was turned into a two-handed radio play with Peter Sallis in the male lead role, and subsequently an animated film, featuring John Mills and Peggy Ashcroft. The Tin-Pot Foreign General and the Old Iron Woman (1984) was a scathing denunciation of the Falklands War. However, Briggs continued to produce humour for children, in works such as the Unlucky Wally series and The Bear.
He was recognized as The Children's Author of the Year in 1993 by the British Book Awards. His graphic novel Ethel and Ernest, which portrayed his parents' 41-year marriage, won Best Illustrated Book in the 1999 British Book Awards.
His first three major works, Father Christmas, Father Christmas Goes on Holiday (both featuring a curmudgeonly Father Christmas who complains incessantly about the "blooming snow"), and Fungus the Bogeyman, were in the form of comics rather than the typical children's-book format of separate text and illustrations. The Snowman (1978) was entirely wordless, and illustrated with only pencil crayons. The Snowman became Briggs' best-known work when in 1982 it was made into an Oscar nominated animated cartoon, that has been shown every year since on British television.
Briggs continued to work in a similar format, but with more adult content, in Gentleman Jim (1980), a sombre look at the working class trials of Jim and Hilda Bloggs, closely based on his parents. When the Wind Blows (1982) confronted the trusting, optimistic Bloggs couple with the horror of nuclear war, and was praised in the British House of Commons for its timeliness and originality. The topic was inspired after Briggs watched a Panorama documentary on nuclear contingency planning, and the dense format of the page was inspired by a Swiss publisher's miniature version of Father Christmas. This book was turned into a two-handed radio play with Peter Sallis in the male lead role, and subsequently an animated film, featuring John Mills and Peggy Ashcroft. The Tin-Pot Foreign General and the Old Iron Woman (1984) was a scathing denunciation of the Falklands War. However, Briggs continued to produce humour for children, in works such as the Unlucky Wally series and The Bear.
He was recognized as The Children's Author of the Year in 1993 by the British Book Awards. His graphic novel Ethel and Ernest, which portrayed his parents' 41-year marriage, won Best Illustrated Book in the 1999 British Book Awards.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 501 reviews
January 3, 2023
The coming nuclear war as a cartoon. Black humour and advice on how to use duct tape (of course, isn't duct tape used for everything?) and plastic bags and of course sit under the table to protect yourself. But you know, that is all that is really offered any of us ordinary people. The politicians, the wealthy and those with good connections, they have bunkers to go to. Baseline price $10M, up to $100M according to specifications. Great big luxurious bunkers provisioned, with water makers, generators, stock piled gasoline, everything you could think of. And we have ... duct tape and plastic bags. Only Finland has a public bunker 60' underground it will hold 6,000 people. Everyone else gets what we have... duct tape and plastic bags.
I don't think its a spoiler to say that they doesn't work!
Rewritten 3 Jan 2022 after reading about the possibilities of nuclear war re Russia and Iran in the new future. I guess where I am, a tiny island in the middle of the Caribbean, will not be affected for a while. Our weather comes from the Sahara. Methinks I'd better start planting a vegetable garden!
I don't think its a spoiler to say that they doesn't work!
Rewritten 3 Jan 2022 after reading about the possibilities of nuclear war re Russia and Iran in the new future. I guess where I am, a tiny island in the middle of the Caribbean, will not be affected for a while. Our weather comes from the Sahara. Methinks I'd better start planting a vegetable garden!
September 3, 2022
A 1982 graphic novel by Raymond Briggs, also known for The wordless picture book The Snowman. Many of his works are wryly amusing, featuring versions of his own parents. Here, Jim and Hilda Bloggs are elderly, retired, sweet, loving and clueless as they prepare for nuclear attack, following government instructions on duct tape and supplies. It does not go as well as they had hoped, and the black comedy turns darker and darker, as they remain sweet and clueless and sweet til the end. The Bloggs are supposed to be like most people, who just do on want to get involved in politics and can't believe it would ever happen. Not for young children, maybe, but it is a warning for people everywhere. And heartbreaking.
See Greta's fine review that led me to read this.
See Greta's fine review that led me to read this.
October 7, 2017
Global thermonuclear war is a surprisingly amusing subject. This graphic novel isn't quite as funny as Doctor Strangelove, but it has some excellent moments.
My favourite bit is near the beginning. Jim is responsibly following the advice in his "Protect and Survive" leaflet (American translation: "Duck and Cover"). He wants to construct a fallout shelter by leaning a door against the wall at a 60 degree angle. So he goes down to the shop to buy a protractor.
He comes back and tells his wife that the international situation must be pretty grim - all the protractors were sold out. But the nice shop-keeper measured him the correct angle on a bit of paper.
You've got to admit that's funny.
__________________________
[Update, Oct 7 2017]
I had an unusually vivid dream last night. My dreams almost always disappear within a minute of waking and I can't remember them, but this one is still clear several hours later.
We were in a taxi in some city, perhaps London. We'd just come out of a tunnel. Suddenly, the driver slammed on the brakes and started reversing as fast as he could. As we went back into the tunnel, I saw the mushroom cloud rising in front of us. It stretched up to the sky.
"I didn't realise it would be so big," said the driver.
My favourite bit is near the beginning. Jim is responsibly following the advice in his "Protect and Survive" leaflet (American translation: "Duck and Cover"). He wants to construct a fallout shelter by leaning a door against the wall at a 60 degree angle. So he goes down to the shop to buy a protractor.
He comes back and tells his wife that the international situation must be pretty grim - all the protractors were sold out. But the nice shop-keeper measured him the correct angle on a bit of paper.
You've got to admit that's funny.
__________________________
[Update, Oct 7 2017]
I had an unusually vivid dream last night. My dreams almost always disappear within a minute of waking and I can't remember them, but this one is still clear several hours later.
We were in a taxi in some city, perhaps London. We'd just come out of a tunnel. Suddenly, the driver slammed on the brakes and started reversing as fast as he could. As we went back into the tunnel, I saw the mushroom cloud rising in front of us. It stretched up to the sky.
"I didn't realise it would be so big," said the driver.
June 13, 2017
"Aching with love and bitterness, it is meant to break your heart" - Guardian
"Whatever your politics this is the most eloquent anti-Bomb statement you are likely to read" - Daily Mail
"Armageddon comes and we are in a place to which no picture book has ever taken us before. Humour has rarely been blacker. A terrific shock..." - The New York Times
"We should all force ourselves to read this grimly humorous and horribly honest book"- Sunday Telegraph
"A visual parable against nuclear war ; all the more chilling for being in the form of a strip cartoon" - Sunday Times
A simple, innocent elderly married couple, Jim and Hilda Bloggs, who live in the English countryside, are faced with a nuclear attack.
To prepare for the Bomb, they follow the governmental instructions of a 'Protect and Survive' leaflet to the letter and construct a shelter made of doors and cushions, and gather emergency supplies.
The optimism and affection of the couple and their faith in the British government remain unshaken even after the bomb has gone off and the nuclear fallout starts to make them sick. They continue to act and think in a naive way and dismiss all evidence of the horror of the attack.
The black, grim humour of the writing and illustrations are in painful contrast with the couple's resolute cheerfulness, and poignantly point out the foolishness of their preparations and the hopelessness of their situation.
The docile couple's inability to understand the horror of the nuclear attack and their steadfast trust in the official advices, which of course are useless, give the story real emotional power and will leave the reader overwhelmed.
"Whatever your politics this is the most eloquent anti-Bomb statement you are likely to read" - Daily Mail
"Armageddon comes and we are in a place to which no picture book has ever taken us before. Humour has rarely been blacker. A terrific shock..." - The New York Times
"We should all force ourselves to read this grimly humorous and horribly honest book"- Sunday Telegraph
"A visual parable against nuclear war ; all the more chilling for being in the form of a strip cartoon" - Sunday Times
A simple, innocent elderly married couple, Jim and Hilda Bloggs, who live in the English countryside, are faced with a nuclear attack.
To prepare for the Bomb, they follow the governmental instructions of a 'Protect and Survive' leaflet to the letter and construct a shelter made of doors and cushions, and gather emergency supplies.
The optimism and affection of the couple and their faith in the British government remain unshaken even after the bomb has gone off and the nuclear fallout starts to make them sick. They continue to act and think in a naive way and dismiss all evidence of the horror of the attack.
The black, grim humour of the writing and illustrations are in painful contrast with the couple's resolute cheerfulness, and poignantly point out the foolishness of their preparations and the hopelessness of their situation.
The docile couple's inability to understand the horror of the nuclear attack and their steadfast trust in the official advices, which of course are useless, give the story real emotional power and will leave the reader overwhelmed.
August 12, 2018
This is one of the saddest stories I've ever read. It was written at a time when governments believed a nuclear attack was a real possibility. In fact, the public had received leaflets through the doors advising them to remove the hinges and hide behind the door if the inevitable happened. Of course we know now, hiding behind doors is pointless.
Raymond Briggs introduces us to an elderly couple who remind us all of our nan and grandad, offering us cups of tea, sweets and cake.
Their innocence is beautifully portrayed. They are naive enough to believe in the government and plod along thinking all is fine.
Unfortunately the evil is out of the bag and there is no going back for mankind.
Jim and Hilda are a stark reminder to us all of a bleak and stark future which is out of our hands. It portrays how helpless we are and how reliant we are of the powers that be to keep us safe.
This is NOT a feel good book. There are no happy endings, and Hollywood is not going to save the day.
Having said all of the above, the book has moments of humour which connect us to this sweet couple.
The book is of its time and is one I will carry with me for the rest of my life.
Raymond Briggs introduces us to an elderly couple who remind us all of our nan and grandad, offering us cups of tea, sweets and cake.
Their innocence is beautifully portrayed. They are naive enough to believe in the government and plod along thinking all is fine.
Unfortunately the evil is out of the bag and there is no going back for mankind.
Jim and Hilda are a stark reminder to us all of a bleak and stark future which is out of our hands. It portrays how helpless we are and how reliant we are of the powers that be to keep us safe.
This is NOT a feel good book. There are no happy endings, and Hollywood is not going to save the day.
Having said all of the above, the book has moments of humour which connect us to this sweet couple.
The book is of its time and is one I will carry with me for the rest of my life.
January 16, 2009
This is possibly the most disturbing book I've ever picked up. The format alone, jarring with the subject matter, sets ones teeth on edge... there's something wholly discomfiting about the illustrated evolution of the round and homely forms of an late-middle-aged couple as they undergo the effects of radiation poisoning. The isolation and naiveté of Hilda and Jimmy Bloggs, their ability to do exactly the wrong thing despite their best intentions, is as appalling as it is compelling to the reader.
In the event of a nuclear strike on The British Isles (or almost anywhere else, for that matter), there may be millions of 'ordinary folk', survivors in the first instance, yet confused about how to proceed. It's this thought that drives this simple yet harrowing book home.
In the event of a nuclear strike on The British Isles (or almost anywhere else, for that matter), there may be millions of 'ordinary folk', survivors in the first instance, yet confused about how to proceed. It's this thought that drives this simple yet harrowing book home.
August 28, 2021
Year of New Authors
In an alternative history, the UK is struck by a devastating nuclear attack. Cities and communication systems are destroyed, roads melted, the earth and air poisoned and ravaged. All seen through the eyes of Mr and Mrs Bloggs living alone in the countryside, who are a bit peeved the milkman hasn't came yet.
For some questionable reason, in the mid 90s when I would have been 11/12, we were shown part of Threads at school; a harrowingly brutal depiction of a city on fire and slowly decaying with radiation and lawlessness. I vivdly remember everyone watching in stoney silence when we saw blackened corpses slowly smouldering amongst rubble, or a mother screaming for her child who hadn't reached the shelter in time. The quiet was only broken with pained 'awws' when a dying cat was shown, prompting the teacher to actually pause the video and ask what the hell was wrong with us for sympathising with a moggy over human lives.
I thought of that a lot when reading this, as Mr and Mrs Bloggs are absolutely adorable cats. They are the quintessential old couple, concerned with regular habits and interacting with fond little jibes. Their love for each other is realistic, simple and tender, and their innocence absolute with adorable misunderstandings that slowly become sad or deadly as the story goes on. Their attempts to guard themselves from the foretold destruction are ineffectual, but based on the only information they're given. Their faith in the government and society continuing after the bomb drops is based on their childhood recollections of the blitz, where the postman would climb over debris and bomb shelters were decorated. A colourful, almost fond time for the pair when they were too young to fully appreciate the horrors, and now too old to realise this a new and thouroughly different kind of war.
While I, as a Brit, have certainly met both a Mr and Mrs Bloggs in real life, they are little bit too silly at times, with constant mispronounciations and their ignorance of politics, but never quite to the point where it felt offensive to me. Some people may also find the sheer amount of text in this book a bit of a slog, but I didn't and the silly conversations of our protagonists simply made everything feel more real.
I consider When the Wind Blows an extremely effective anti-war piece, far more so than others, precisely because it doesn't really show any war or even the bomb itself. Compared to the disgustingly gory animation in Barefoot Gen or A Short Vision (1956), I tend to find these gruesome depictions of the explosion simply mesmerising, so violent and destructive that they almost seem impossible and thus detatched from reality. In the book it's more subtle, the explosion is a white blast that contorts the very comic frames until they shudder back to normal, leaving no doubt that the previous idyllic frolics of country life are now forever warped entirely. The following slow disintegration of colour and our protagonists outlines, by radiation poisoning and the reality that no one is coming to help them, is a thoughtfully more unsettling horror than watching someone violently vaporised, and it's precisely this lack of sensationalism thatmakes it feel more visceral.
This is a very hard read, especially if you go into it knowing exactly what is coming. It's horrible, it's sad, it's unbearably tragic, but a beautifully sweet piece. Is such a work useful post Cold-War? Absolutely, because the Blogg's innocence is still a problem for today. 'It'll be over by Christmas' says Mr Bloggs as he drinks contaminated rain water, and 'They're overreacting about this virus the same way they do about Global warming. It's just a bad flu' said people over a year ago. Our complacency is as steadfast as the Bloggs' normalcy bias, and we've yet to find that sweet spot between rampant paranoia and ignoring what actually needs to be done.
A wonderful work of mental flaggellation that ignores shock tactics to stab directly at your heart. Five stars.
In an alternative history, the UK is struck by a devastating nuclear attack. Cities and communication systems are destroyed, roads melted, the earth and air poisoned and ravaged. All seen through the eyes of Mr and Mrs Bloggs living alone in the countryside, who are a bit peeved the milkman hasn't came yet.
For some questionable reason, in the mid 90s when I would have been 11/12, we were shown part of Threads at school; a harrowingly brutal depiction of a city on fire and slowly decaying with radiation and lawlessness. I vivdly remember everyone watching in stoney silence when we saw blackened corpses slowly smouldering amongst rubble, or a mother screaming for her child who hadn't reached the shelter in time. The quiet was only broken with pained 'awws' when a dying cat was shown, prompting the teacher to actually pause the video and ask what the hell was wrong with us for sympathising with a moggy over human lives.
I thought of that a lot when reading this, as Mr and Mrs Bloggs are absolutely adorable cats. They are the quintessential old couple, concerned with regular habits and interacting with fond little jibes. Their love for each other is realistic, simple and tender, and their innocence absolute with adorable misunderstandings that slowly become sad or deadly as the story goes on. Their attempts to guard themselves from the foretold destruction are ineffectual, but based on the only information they're given. Their faith in the government and society continuing after the bomb drops is based on their childhood recollections of the blitz, where the postman would climb over debris and bomb shelters were decorated. A colourful, almost fond time for the pair when they were too young to fully appreciate the horrors, and now too old to realise this a new and thouroughly different kind of war.
While I, as a Brit, have certainly met both a Mr and Mrs Bloggs in real life, they are little bit too silly at times, with constant mispronounciations and their ignorance of politics, but never quite to the point where it felt offensive to me. Some people may also find the sheer amount of text in this book a bit of a slog, but I didn't and the silly conversations of our protagonists simply made everything feel more real.
I consider When the Wind Blows an extremely effective anti-war piece, far more so than others, precisely because it doesn't really show any war or even the bomb itself. Compared to the disgustingly gory animation in Barefoot Gen or A Short Vision (1956), I tend to find these gruesome depictions of the explosion simply mesmerising, so violent and destructive that they almost seem impossible and thus detatched from reality. In the book it's more subtle, the explosion is a white blast that contorts the very comic frames until they shudder back to normal, leaving no doubt that the previous idyllic frolics of country life are now forever warped entirely. The following slow disintegration of colour and our protagonists outlines, by radiation poisoning and the reality that no one is coming to help them, is a thoughtfully more unsettling horror than watching someone violently vaporised, and it's precisely this lack of sensationalism thatmakes it feel more visceral.
This is a very hard read, especially if you go into it knowing exactly what is coming. It's horrible, it's sad, it's unbearably tragic, but a beautifully sweet piece. Is such a work useful post Cold-War? Absolutely, because the Blogg's innocence is still a problem for today. 'It'll be over by Christmas' says Mr Bloggs as he drinks contaminated rain water, and 'They're overreacting about this virus the same way they do about Global warming. It's just a bad flu' said people over a year ago. Our complacency is as steadfast as the Bloggs' normalcy bias, and we've yet to find that sweet spot between rampant paranoia and ignoring what actually needs to be done.
A wonderful work of mental flaggellation that ignores shock tactics to stab directly at your heart. Five stars.
March 27, 2020
I am at a loss for words. This book has emotionally devastated me.
Beautifully depicting the horrors of war and nuclear weapons, with its contrasting black humor, this book is a must read.
Beautifully depicting the horrors of war and nuclear weapons, with its contrasting black humor, this book is a must read.
April 8, 2024
6/10 ⭐⭐⭐
Una edición de diez para la obra cumbre de Raymond Briggs, en tapa dura con un tamaño de cómic europeo, con prólogo de Paco Roca, traducción de Rosa Montero y extensa entrevista al autor (de febrero del 2003) en sus páginas finales.
Casi 40 años después de su edición española llega esta reedición. Lástima que la historia principal sea más propia de su tiempo. Un matrimonio entrañable, de edad avanzada, teme la posibilidad de un ataque nuclear. Diálogos inocentes de su día a día mientras se preparan ante lo desconocido.
Edición pensada más bien para coleccionistas que quieran tener en sus estanterías un título imprescindible dentro de la historia del cómic.
Una edición de diez para la obra cumbre de Raymond Briggs, en tapa dura con un tamaño de cómic europeo, con prólogo de Paco Roca, traducción de Rosa Montero y extensa entrevista al autor (de febrero del 2003) en sus páginas finales.
Casi 40 años después de su edición española llega esta reedición. Lástima que la historia principal sea más propia de su tiempo. Un matrimonio entrañable, de edad avanzada, teme la posibilidad de un ataque nuclear. Diálogos inocentes de su día a día mientras se preparan ante lo desconocido.
Edición pensada más bien para coleccionistas que quieran tener en sus estanterías un título imprescindible dentro de la historia del cómic.
September 22, 2015
For those who are too young to remember the 1980s, it was a decade of utterly foolish magical thinking about nuclear annihilation, an era in which governments in both the United States and the United Kingdom pretended that, with enough shovels — and a stiff upper lip — people could survive a nuclear blast. Cartoonist Raymond Briggs published this illustrated black comedy in 1982 at the height of Cold War brinkmanship and civilian terror.
In When the Wind Blows, pensioners James and Hilda Bllloggs take the official declarations and a home county pamphlet to heart and build themselves a fallout shelter in the complete faith that “they” know what they’re talking about, with decisions intelligently made by “commuters” (computers). James makes certain that the household doors used to construct the shelter are at the precise recommended 60-degree angle so that that the “fallout” — the couple don’t really know what fallout is — will slide neatly down the side. The rest of their plans are about as useful.
Mr. and Mrs. Bloggs vaguely think that this last war will be an abbreviated rehash of World War II and the recommended Inner Core of Refuge an updated version of the air-raid shelter. They soon discover differently. The Beatrix Potter-style illustrations provide a satirical contrast to the Bloggs’ overly optimistic faith in the Powers That Be to know best. A wonderful satire of those mad years.
In When the Wind Blows, pensioners James and Hilda Bllloggs take the official declarations and a home county pamphlet to heart and build themselves a fallout shelter in the complete faith that “they” know what they’re talking about, with decisions intelligently made by “commuters” (computers). James makes certain that the household doors used to construct the shelter are at the precise recommended 60-degree angle so that that the “fallout” — the couple don’t really know what fallout is — will slide neatly down the side. The rest of their plans are about as useful.
Mr. and Mrs. Bloggs vaguely think that this last war will be an abbreviated rehash of World War II and the recommended Inner Core of Refuge an updated version of the air-raid shelter. They soon discover differently. The Beatrix Potter-style illustrations provide a satirical contrast to the Bloggs’ overly optimistic faith in the Powers That Be to know best. A wonderful satire of those mad years.
January 9, 2023
Definitely the greatest war book I've ever read
June 14, 2019
A plain harrowing tale about two clueless old bumpkins preparing for the inevitable nuclear war with just the sort of cheery attitude that entirely encompasses the notion that "Ignorance is a bliss". These two morons really have no idea what's coming to them, just living their daily lives almost as normal, talking about politics without truly understanding, old James trying to prepare for the nuke the best he can and talking about whatever's "the correct thing", and both of them feeling nostalgia at World War II of all things and believing this is just going to be much the same, no need to get too fussed about it. Oftentimes I would've wished to yell at them about what kind of a situation they're really in, how serious it all is, and how bloody stupid they are - but what would be the point? They're going to die anyway - no way to avoid it, really.
Mostly I just wonder why the Soviets - or whoever - would bother to nuke what appears to be just empty countryside. I suspect they had their reasons.
I think I need to go out for a while.
Mostly I just wonder why the Soviets - or whoever - would bother to nuke what appears to be just empty countryside. I suspect they had their reasons.
I think I need to go out for a while.
January 14, 2023
When the Wind Blows by Raymond Briggs
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5*)
I got this Graphic Novel after it was recommended to me by a dear friend. And I was expecting a book about war and THE bomb and… well I don‘t know what I expected but not what I got… 🙂 It was way better eventhough it was bitter sweet. 😢
We are following Jim and Hilda Blogg in the days before and after a nuclear attack on Britain, When the Wind Blows is alternately funny, shocking, heartbreaking and devastating. Only few can read it and not be deeply moved…
…same thing for me… After such a short story I really cared for Jim and Hilda and I was really sad to see what happened. But then again, I guess it would be very realistic. I haven‘t read a Graphic Novel which was that strong when it comes to emotions, attachment to characters and atmosphere. 😢🙂 Also I liked to see that the story started in bright, happy colors and ended in grey and brown and sad colors. Fantastic work with an important message. 100% recommend for everyone that is human… 😉😁👍🏻
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5*)
I got this Graphic Novel after it was recommended to me by a dear friend. And I was expecting a book about war and THE bomb and… well I don‘t know what I expected but not what I got… 🙂 It was way better eventhough it was bitter sweet. 😢
We are following Jim and Hilda Blogg in the days before and after a nuclear attack on Britain, When the Wind Blows is alternately funny, shocking, heartbreaking and devastating. Only few can read it and not be deeply moved…
…same thing for me… After such a short story I really cared for Jim and Hilda and I was really sad to see what happened. But then again, I guess it would be very realistic. I haven‘t read a Graphic Novel which was that strong when it comes to emotions, attachment to characters and atmosphere. 😢🙂 Also I liked to see that the story started in bright, happy colors and ended in grey and brown and sad colors. Fantastic work with an important message. 100% recommend for everyone that is human… 😉😁👍🏻
July 10, 2019
a darkly humorous look at what would happen if the Russians dropped the bomb on England. Our couple, James and Hilda, have a WWII mentality about the event which is woefully out of date for nuclear fall out. They're ill prepared having only a little time to take a few precautions outlined in pamphlets put out by the government which were designed more to keep panic from rising, as opposed to offering any real help in a no win situation. I'd recently heard about the movie of this and being unable to find a copy currently, I read the book. Not a good book if you're trying to stay away from bleak truths, but interestingly drawn and written. The movie traumatizes quite a few little kids whose parents put on an animated film not realizing that animation isn’t strictly for children. Surprise!
February 11, 2020
When the Wind Blows Follows the lives of a nice elderly couple in rural England as they act in accordance with the government mandated policy on surviving the upcoming nuclear holocaust. The book is a great, but depressing (it is the end of the world after all), piece of satire, critiquing everything from the national government for woefully under-preparing their citizenry for the horrible situation they have been put in to the naivety of people firmly ensconced in the past and glorifying the good old days. The story is short, but gets its message across in a compelling manner.
April 7, 2022
Muito inglês, quero um chá. Mas sem radiação.
March 15, 2025
Un tebeo tremendamente triste y que a la vez destaca por su humor negro. Creo que Briggs hace un gran trabajo al centrar el holocausto nuclear en el matrimonio protagonista, de forma que es muy descriptiva de la experiencia de la bomba pero a la vez transmite un drama personal.
November 20, 2019
Raymond Briggs? No! Don't think "Snowman." Instead think nuclear war. Devastation. Innocent victims.
Did I enjoy reading this? No. Does it communicate the consequences of nuclear war? Yes.
Do NOT read this for pleasure. Read only if you need to be reminded of the horrors of war ... compounded with the finality of nuclear technology.
Did I enjoy reading this? No. Does it communicate the consequences of nuclear war? Yes.
Do NOT read this for pleasure. Read only if you need to be reminded of the horrors of war ... compounded with the finality of nuclear technology.
August 31, 2014
WOW!
Briggs brings the realities of what the Cold War was and clearly demonstrates the threat that faced most of the modern western world in the early 1980's.
The reader is invited to look inside the private country home of Mr. and Mrs. J. Bloggs,and observe the daily goings on of a naive, stiff upper lipped, British couple as they struggle to make sense of an impending nuclear strike by the Soviet Union ("Ruskies"); these struggles acting as comic relief (military acronyms are another instrument for humour in this poignant little Graphic Novel). The Bloggs's compare the "current" situation to their now romanticised view of WW2 (something that only the distance of time can achieve), and their discussions are liberally peppered with the innocent mistakes so common with the elderly. This adds genuineness to their characterizations. The fear of the times, and ultimately the dropping of "the bomb"(presumably in London) is realistically conveyed through Briggs's simplistic caricatures. Just as Mr. and Mrs. Bloggs are isolated from any news of the actualities, so too is the reader, allowing Briggs to fully alert us under his terms, as to what the threat of full scale nuclear war and fallout would mean.
The movement of colour, beginning with cheerful/romantic pastel colours transitions in the end to sickly greys, greens, and blues, signifies the horrors of radiation poisoning due to nuclear fallout. We (the public at large) are clearly being warned of what such a holocaust would resemble.Today we live without this same threat of nuclear war but this story still invokes the powerlessness that civilians today face when under the threat of political violence.
However depressing this story is, it is beautifully rendered and will be a treasured addition to my collection.
Briggs brings the realities of what the Cold War was and clearly demonstrates the threat that faced most of the modern western world in the early 1980's.
The reader is invited to look inside the private country home of Mr. and Mrs. J. Bloggs,and observe the daily goings on of a naive, stiff upper lipped, British couple as they struggle to make sense of an impending nuclear strike by the Soviet Union ("Ruskies"); these struggles acting as comic relief (military acronyms are another instrument for humour in this poignant little Graphic Novel). The Bloggs's compare the "current" situation to their now romanticised view of WW2 (something that only the distance of time can achieve), and their discussions are liberally peppered with the innocent mistakes so common with the elderly. This adds genuineness to their characterizations. The fear of the times, and ultimately the dropping of "the bomb"(presumably in London) is realistically conveyed through Briggs's simplistic caricatures. Just as Mr. and Mrs. Bloggs are isolated from any news of the actualities, so too is the reader, allowing Briggs to fully alert us under his terms, as to what the threat of full scale nuclear war and fallout would mean.
The movement of colour, beginning with cheerful/romantic pastel colours transitions in the end to sickly greys, greens, and blues, signifies the horrors of radiation poisoning due to nuclear fallout. We (the public at large) are clearly being warned of what such a holocaust would resemble.Today we live without this same threat of nuclear war but this story still invokes the powerlessness that civilians today face when under the threat of political violence.
However depressing this story is, it is beautifully rendered and will be a treasured addition to my collection.
February 28, 2025
eu achei que tinha lido livros tristes até ler esse
September 6, 2022
Devastating
September 16, 2015
I am not saying that this is a bad book, with my one star. I am saying that this book *broke* me, that it gave me screaming nightmares and panic attacks (and I was not a child when I read it), and that I walked around in a daze for weeks after reading it, waiting for the sky to fall and death to come slowly and inexorably. Which is, I suppose, what it was meant to do--and it did it very well indeed.
September 6, 2015
I've seen the movie previously but that doesn't change just how horribly sad and blackly funny Raymond Briggs' adult book about the nuclear warfare situation in the Cold War era is. The juxtaposition of his illustration style as seen in things like The Snowman and Father Christmas (staples of my childhood) with the bleak adult subject matter serves to underline the absurdity of the situation lived through by Mr & Mrs Bloggs.
August 21, 2018
Fairly macabre, but an interesting read...
December 31, 2018
Similar in theme to "Atomic Cafe" and "Dr Strangelove", but with an innocence and fragility that makes the impact so much greater
February 15, 2023
Groza tego komiksu schowana jest pod płaszczykiem czarnej komedii o parze emerytów przygotowującej się do ataku bombowego ze strony Związku Radzieckiego. Są lata 80-te, zwykły śmiertelnik traktuje drugą wojnę światową trochę jak, nie pozbawione sentymentu, wspomnienie z czasów młodości. Starsi państwo ewidentnie nie pamiętają tragizmu tamtych wydarzeń lub próbują go oswajać, w związku z tym nie zdają sobie w pełni sprawy z zagrożeń. Mnóstwo tu prób wypierania rzeczywistości, ślepej wiary w bezduszne i często głupie rządowe instrukcje, a w końcu niezrozumienia świata. Bohaterowie są komiczni, mylą Rosjan z Niemcami i historycznych przywódców, mieszają wagę zagrożenia z banalnymi codziennymi troskami, często nie rozumieją wiadomości z gazet. Ten komiks to koszmar, który narasta z każdą stroną. Pod kątem czysto formalnym nie jest to pasjonująca lektura, bo Briggs całość opiera głownie na dialogu, a bajkowa strona graficzna (choć bardzo charakterystyczna) jest całkowicie podporządkowana rozmowie bohaterów, jednak podskórny niepokój fabuły, aż do dosyć drastycznego zakończenia, to prawdziwe mistrzostwo świata. "When the Wind Blows" pokazuje bolączki współczesnego świata i bezradność rządzących wobec nich. Wskazuje gdzie w tym wszystkim jest miejsce szarego człowieka, który nie jest w stanie ogarnąć całości procesów, jakie dzieją się na jego oczach. To niestety rzecz bardzo aktualna szczególnie dzisiaj, w czasach sieciowej dezinformacji. Absolutny klasyk, niestety wciąż niewydany w Polsce
June 1, 2022
THIS IS SO SAD AHH
January 27, 2015
A graphic and desperately poignant tale; which importantly bears periodic re-reading.
A retired working-class couple, James and his wife Hilda (affectionately referred to as ducks/ dear / dearest) respond to the threat (later proved) of a nuclear bomb strike.
James reads in his broadsheet newspaper and hears on the radio of the ‘deteriorating international situation,’ expressed in a typical political vagueness of speech. Thankfully he has picked up a leaflet in his local public library entitled “The Householder’s Guide To Survival.” At this point I was starkly reminded of a booklet which the British Government (Labour, at that time) distributed to every household back in 2004: a copy of which can be seen at http://www.direct.gov.uk/prod_consum_... Plus ça change.
Modified by the actions his wife wants to take to maintain the smooth-running of their home, they make their preparations based on the incomplete and non-specific information given; supplemented from their initiative in remembering how they successfully fought the Second World War on the Home Front! The result is predictably poignant, farcical and in the finality either heart-renderingly tragic or a blessed release, depending on the reader’s point of view.
Don’t overlook beginning to read this book at the title page. James is reading “The Times” in his local library. From the content of “When The Wind Blows” I’d guess Raymond Briggs’ politics to be more in line with those of “The Guardian”. Such rewarding subtleties are too easily overlooked. This book is a real wake-up call not to take democratic government for granted, and never to forget that such government (of whatever colour of politics) is only as good as the quality of politicians elected to serve, and the truthfulness and reliability of the sources of information that each individual elector uses to decide their vote.
A retired working-class couple, James and his wife Hilda (affectionately referred to as ducks/ dear / dearest) respond to the threat (later proved) of a nuclear bomb strike.
James reads in his broadsheet newspaper and hears on the radio of the ‘deteriorating international situation,’ expressed in a typical political vagueness of speech. Thankfully he has picked up a leaflet in his local public library entitled “The Householder’s Guide To Survival.” At this point I was starkly reminded of a booklet which the British Government (Labour, at that time) distributed to every household back in 2004: a copy of which can be seen at http://www.direct.gov.uk/prod_consum_... Plus ça change.
Modified by the actions his wife wants to take to maintain the smooth-running of their home, they make their preparations based on the incomplete and non-specific information given; supplemented from their initiative in remembering how they successfully fought the Second World War on the Home Front! The result is predictably poignant, farcical and in the finality either heart-renderingly tragic or a blessed release, depending on the reader’s point of view.
Don’t overlook beginning to read this book at the title page. James is reading “The Times” in his local library. From the content of “When The Wind Blows” I’d guess Raymond Briggs’ politics to be more in line with those of “The Guardian”. Such rewarding subtleties are too easily overlooked. This book is a real wake-up call not to take democratic government for granted, and never to forget that such government (of whatever colour of politics) is only as good as the quality of politicians elected to serve, and the truthfulness and reliability of the sources of information that each individual elector uses to decide their vote.
July 28, 2011
Illustrated in a comic book format, which shouldn’t work with this type of story but does do so well. A graphic novel that depicts the horrors of nuclear war; sometimes a difficult, moving and poignant read, it tells the story of Jim and Hilda Bloggs who are a retired and thoroughly English couple (previously seen in Gentleman Jim by Briggs), that face the situation of a nuclear attack on English shores. When Jim hears on the radio the three-day warning he sets about making a homemade shelter, whilst Hilda continues her everyday life in blissful ignorance quoting ‘I shouldn’t worry too much it’ll probably all blow over’. The shelter Jim builds is tantamount of the homemade ones they would use in WW2 whilst being totally naive to the real threat of nuclear fall out. After surviving the initial attack and following ill-advised government instruction, the 2nd part of the book is disturbing at times as we watch the characters slowly succumb to the effects of radiation poisoning.
June 5, 2021
Man, I've been waiting to read this one for ages!
An old couple in the British countryside and their personal experience of a nuclear holocaust. That's it. That's the whole thing.
It expertly captures the mood of "it can't happen here" and "the government will take care of us, right?" that ...so many of us carry around about so many things! You could read it at their naive expense or you could read it as a mirror of your own countless self-protective illusions about the world. Or some of both. Also nuclear warfare is actually terrifying, still, we just have a little more distance from it for now! Wheeee. It's great. Raymond Briggs is the best tone-setter of all time.
Also, it's that beautiful milestone book of uh, my kids are curious about the book I'm reading and trying to read it for themselves and actually it is utterly inappropriate for them, even though it's graphically unassuming. :P Congrats, kids! Time to go put it on a high shelf!
An old couple in the British countryside and their personal experience of a nuclear holocaust. That's it. That's the whole thing.
It expertly captures the mood of "it can't happen here" and "the government will take care of us, right?" that ...so many of us carry around about so many things! You could read it at their naive expense or you could read it as a mirror of your own countless self-protective illusions about the world. Or some of both. Also nuclear warfare is actually terrifying, still, we just have a little more distance from it for now! Wheeee. It's great. Raymond Briggs is the best tone-setter of all time.
Also, it's that beautiful milestone book of uh, my kids are curious about the book I'm reading and trying to read it for themselves and actually it is utterly inappropriate for them, even though it's graphically unassuming. :P Congrats, kids! Time to go put it on a high shelf!
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