Books: Ethel & Ernest

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A best seller in Britain, this winsome little book is one family's 20th century, told as a comic strip that fast-forwards through the decades. Briggs' artful rendering of his parents' striving captures the English working class, and as the tale progresses, you find yourself slowly sucked into their daily patter, amused by their cooing voices, impressed by their bravery. At the end, you're hardly prepared for the emotional wallop.

--By Steven Henry Madoff