It is, in the main, from this publication that a further collection of drawings has been assembled for the fifth book of his wonderful fables, whimsies, observations, melancholy introspections, and dreams.

Leunig’s crescent moons continue scudding among god’s bruises in the heavens, his ducks are still inquisitive, angels visit as of old, and Mr Curley reappears in surreal landscapes and situations. And in addition to these very personal symbols the artist has fascination with, and great technical drawing-skill in, creating pictures of light entering through open doors into bare, dark rooms. His concern with light and darkness and his ability to delineate such are hinting, at least, to a new direction.

Ramming the Shears – an admirably witty ‘Spoonerism’ from the classic Tom Roberts painting – forms the title with Leunig’s irreverent painting depicting the event. The collection has been self­published by its originator to attract a larger income than the standard author’s royalties yield, and to sell a dollar cheaper than his last title A Bag of Roosters published in 1983. The entire first printing of 50,000 copies have been sold to a large national distributor.

But it is not for this that Michael Leunig is still, rightly, the most talked about graphic satirist in Australia.