F*ck

Everything has a downside, if only you looked at it the right way. Award-winning cartoonist Martin Rowson tells the story of Earth, from start to finish, in sixty-seven savagely witty, splendidly satirical vignettes. Each image features a one-word speech bubble proving that almost every milestone in history had its downside and can therefore be summed up in one succinct, withering, mood-deflating expletive. This alternative history will appeal to pessimists of every stripe, young and old. Contrarians and curmudgeons who already know that every great event was a let down to someone somewhere will instantly embrace the incredible wisdom of this priceless series of cartoons. Every historical turning point is satirically savaged—the emergence of life, the death of the dinosaurs, the invention of the wheel, the Trojan War, the Crucifixion, the discovery of America, the Revolutionary War, the Industrial Revolution, the Civil War, Communism, consumerism, the Cold War, the War on Terror—all the way to the end of the world.

Martin Rowson is an award-winning political cartoonist whose work appears regularly in The Guardian, The Times, The Independent on Sunday, the Daily Mirror, the Scotsman, and Granta. His previous publications include comic book adaptations of The Waste Land and Tristram Shandy; a novel, Snatches; and a memoir, Stuff. He lives in London.