Warwick history with comic twist

The book, Warwick: Exploring with a Sketchbook is a comic history with lots of Michael’s sketches of the town’s buildings and light-hearted captions.

Michael said: “It is a history of Warwick with a twist. It is in the style of a graphic novel and contains over 400 of my sketches. There are also many words which tell the story of Warwick from 914 to today. The tales are told on four walks through the town.

“It is in a style very loosely inspired by great writers of comic books such as Raymond Briggs (Ethel and Ernest) and Bryan Talbot (Alice in Sunderland).

“I make no claim to producing great art or literature but take pleasure in sketching and reducing stories of the past to a few telling words.”

Michael’s interest is in buildings and they dominate the pages. He said: “The majority of the sketches were made at the scene either while sitting in a cafe or on a public bench or in the seat of a car.”

Many stories, such as the history of the castle and the earls have had to be greatly simplified.

Warwick: Exploring with a Sketchbook is published by Shay Books of Leamington, priced £10.