View source for Lets Compromise and Say I'm Right: Calman on Love & Relationships by Mel Calman

{{infobox1
|title=Lets Compromise and Say I'm Right: Calman on Love & Relationships
|author=Mel Calman
|reviewer=Sue Magee
|genre=Humour
|summary=A collection of cartoons from the late, great Mel Calman which concentrates on  the relationships between the sexes. Gentle, insightful humour and definitely recommended.
|rating=4
|buy=Yes
|borrow=Yes
|pages=112
|publisher=Souvenir Press
|date=October 2015
|isbn=978-0285643093
|cover=0285643096
|aznuk=0285643096
|aznus=0285643096
}}

There was always something about Mel Calman's work.  It ''looked'' like a scribble: you knew that you could do better - only you couldn't.  Just a few lines produce the self-satisfied man on the front of the book.  ''Let's compromise and say I'm right...'' he says and you can see from the woman's expression that she had ''hoped'' for, but really wasn't expecting, anything better.  ''Calman on Love & Relationships'' is an insightful look at the way men and women interact and how communication sometimes gets in the way of understanding.

It's a slim book - just 112 pages including the foreword by Michael Palin and introduction by Calman's daughter Stephanie - and perfect for slipping into a pocket or bag for those waiting room moments.  The humour is gentle and occasionally takes just a moment or two to hit the spot - so you're unlikely to be embarrassed by a loud guffaw.  On the other hand - man says to woman, over a glass of wine ''Now tell me all about yourself - briefly...'' might just tickle the funny bone.

Palin describes the mirror which Calman holds up to us as ''uncomfortably truthful'', playing on our inconsistencies and I'll confess that - just occasionally (''obviously'') I was shocked into self recognition.  It's funnier, somehow, when you recognise ''others'' and preferably not those related to you: woman to man: ''You don't understand women''. Man: ''You never let me meet any''.  There was also an acknowledgement that life might not be entirely pleasant for some people:  man lying in bed says to wife ''Being a failure isn't as easy as it looks.''

Calman was no expert in human relationships - other than by virtue of the fact that he'd experienced quite a few.  He once dedicated one of his books to his ex-wives, for their help with the research - and he didn't actually live with his last partner.  His daughter says that it was as though he'd spent his life adjusting the distances back and forth to get just the right level of closeness, although she accepts that the two marriages gave us the better jokes.  We have to be grateful for them.

I'd like to thank the publishers for sending a copy to the Bookbag.

If this book appeals then you might also enjoy [[The Book of Hugs by Attaboy]] or [[Quick Pint After Work by Luke Lewis]].

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[[Category:Michael Palin]]
[[Category:Stephanie Calman]]