Lockdown Lunacy 2

A comical memoir of the time when the world slowed down, and we were told to stay at home... again

Something for all to enjoy

In 2021, one year into the Covid-19 pandemic, we found ourselves in lockdown again. Lockdown Lunacy 2 captures the highlights and lowlights of what became a different winter and spring.

This second anthology of animal antic cartoons is a reminder of the crazy times; when town squares fell silent, we drank pints standing in the snow, and only cautious cuddles were allowed. It is something the whole family can enjoy, as a memoir of when our world slowed down, and we were told to stay at home.

A Peek Inside

There are twenty-six cartoons accompanied by a limerick. Each cartoon portrays something that happened during the second lockdown period.

Such as Christmas being cancelled for many people at short notice. This inspired one of the first drawings ‘The Mole with the Incredibly Large Collection of Toilet Roll... at Christmas’.

The Mole with the Incredibly Large Collection of Toilet Roll ... at Christmas

There once was a friendly mole,
Who was partial to the odd toilet roll.
The festive season came
And lockdown was to blame,
For him not seeing another soul.

This year we have spent a long winter indoors waiting for the country to open up.

We have self-isolated, cautiously cuddled, met in groups of six or less, and quarantined in hotels 

We have drunk pints in the snow and done our best to figure out the holiday traffic light system.

We have followed the science, stayed alert and formed an orderly queue for our tests and muted our way through lots of vitamin pills.

All of these developments have been captured in these cartoons, as well as many more.

Other comical characters brought to you through this book include:

Shark Self-isolating

Lobsters Staying Local

Fed-up Ferrets

Cats Cautiously Cuddling

Groups of Six

Hares on Holiday

And... we have an illustration of how the UK has been following the science!

Risky Road Trip

‘Stay safe’, they said, ‘follow the science’.
For us, it was an act of compliance.
But the ducks did not,
They were a naughty lot:
A blatant act of defiance.

Lockdown Lunacy has been created by Nicola Smalley.

"Lockdown helped many people realise hidden talents that lay waiting to emerge. This book is an example of one of these. 

I have always been creative, but I didn’t realise I could draw. I began to create cartoons at the start of the first Covid-19 lockdown in spring 2020 as I saw it as a way to keep in touch with my mum and dad as they love to receive handmade cards. 

One thing led to another and spurred on by encouraging words from my family and friends, I produced enough pictures to turn into a book: Lockdown Lunacy. 

The following winter, we were in another lockdown, and my friend Simon sent me some limericks he had written. I never intended on drawing more pictures, but his words inspired me to pick up my colouring pens again. More ideas came over the months and I had enough for a second book, Lockdown Lunacy 2."

This wasn’t actually the book I intended on publishing this year. I have been writing another, very different book about ancestral healing but it isn’t quite ready yet. This book of cartoons is yet another surprising outcome of this pandemic.

This is my second self-published book, but I haven’t created it alone. So, here are my words of thanks:

  • My husband Jason Smalley, for his constant support in helping me flex my creative muscle. And for his help in producing this book through photographing my cartoons and in the design and production process.
  • Simon Young for contributing the limericks for Semaphore on the Shore, Racoon at Noon and Perturbed Pigeons.
  • My friends and family for their encouragement that has spurred me on to draw more.

The Covid-19 pandemic is something that many people would rather forget. Our lives have been turned upside down, and the world will never be the same again. However, I have seen some fascinating things emerge from the shake-up. Lockdown Lunacy 1 and 2 are two of those things!

Thank you for considering buying a copy of Lockdown Lunacy 2 to keep for yourself.’

If you would like a copy of Lockdown Lunacy 1, please click here.

Purchasing options

If you place your order by Tuesday 21st December there is an outside chance your book will arrive in time for Christmas. However, if we can't make the Christmas deadline, it will arrive sometime between Christmas and New Year.

Price: £12 + p&p

Product Details:

Hardback cover
Full Colour
24cm x 16cm
26 cartoons and limericks
55 pages

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