Touching A Nerve - Print

Touching A Nerve
A Curly Collection of Churchy Cartoons By Jim

By Brendan Boughen

[2 copies only in stock at this reduced price 1 July 2026
We will not re-order this title when these copies have sold]

A sharp, funny and thought-provoking collection of church-themed cartoons that pokes at religion, politics, justice and spirituality with warmth, wit and a well-aimed prod.

This book will help you:

• Laugh at the quirks, contradictions and comic absurdities of church life.
• Reflect on faith, doubt, religion and spirituality through accessible visual humour.
• Explore big questions about God, justice, politics and community without heavy theological jargon.
• Recognise the strange, sincere and sometimes uncomfortable realities of modern church culture.
• Enjoy cartoons that are irreverent, intelligent and grounded in lived experience.
• Start conversations about belief, inclusion, hypocrisy, compassion and social justice.
• See how humour can reveal truth, challenge assumptions and touch a nerve.

Features

• Collects 120 church-themed cartoons by Jim.
• Features cartoons originally created for Touchstone magazine and other media.
• Colour throughout.
• Includes an introduction reflecting on cartoons as a form of meaning-making and “going to church.”
• Covers life, God, religion, politics, social justice and spirituality in the modern world.

Soft cover, 132pp, colour throughout
Dimensions not specified
ISBN 9780473503437
Cartoons by Jim (2019)

Description

Church can be sacred, strange, beautiful, infuriating and unintentionally hilarious.

This collection steps directly into that complicated space, offering cartoons that make readers laugh while also nudging them to think more carefully about faith, institutions and the world beyond the church door. With a style that is irreverent but not careless, sharp but not hollow, these cartoons speak to anyone who has ever sat through a sermon, wrestled with belief, watched religious people argue over the wrong things, or wondered what on earth is going on inside church walls.

Gathering 120 cartoons created over the previous decade for magazines, billboards and online spaces, this book explores the territory where humour and truth meet. The cartoons touch on the everyday oddities of church culture as well as larger themes including God, religion, politics, social justice, spirituality, inclusion and hypocrisy. Some pieces invite a quick laugh; others may provoke discomfort, recognition or debate. That is part of their strength. They are designed not only to entertain, but to reveal the assumptions, habits and contradictions that shape religious communities.

At the heart of the collection is the idea that cartoons can be a kind of church: a place where meaning is encountered, truth is uncovered and people are drawn into reflection. For Jim, cartooning is not simply a way to make jokes; it is a way of engaging with life, faith and humanity. His work is rooted in a lifetime of exposure to Christian culture, yet it speaks just as strongly to those outside the church who are curious, sceptical or simply amused by its rituals and contradictions.

Funny, curly, challenging and generous, this is an ideal book for churchgoers with a sense of humour, clergy, lay leaders, theology students, progressive Christians, cartoon lovers and anyone who enjoys satire that makes room for both laughter and conscience.

About the Author

Brendan Boughen, also known by his cartooning alter ego Jim, lives and works in Auckland, New Zealand. He grew up in Australia as the son of a preacher and has been drawing cartoons throughout his life, often with religious themes shaped by his upbringing in the Christian Church. He was first published in a newspaper by the age of 13 and in a book by 14. Since then, his cartoons have appeared in magazines, websites and publications in Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States. His first book, Gone Astray: A Collection of (Sac)Religious Cartoons by Jim, was published in 2006 and collected his first decade of church-themed cartooning. His single-panel cartoons have also appeared monthly in Touchstone magazine, published by the Methodist Church of New Zealand.

Contents

A structured contents list is not available, but the book includes:

Introduction
Cartoons on church life and religious culture
Cartoons on God, faith and spirituality
Cartoons on politics and public life
Cartoons on social justice and inclusion
Cartoons on the habits, language and architecture of church communities
Cartoons reflecting on the modern world from inside and outside church walls
Author background and contextual material