Something good almost always comes out of a less than good beginning, muses cartoonist Maurice Tanti Burlò.

He is a prime example, since his passion for caricature emerged from anger towards former Prime Minister Dom Mintoff.

"In the 1970s I was very angry at Dom and decided to get back at him. So I contacted the then editor of The Sunday Times, Anthony Montanaro, and started submitting cartoons for the paper," he said, adding that he wished Mr Montanaro, who died recently, were present for the launch of his new book.

That was how a previous series, Blame It On Dom!, had started and the cartoons were published in a hardbound book by Progress Press in 2002. Today the relationship between Mr Tanti Burlò and the former Premier have improved, he said.

Yesterday, another book by Mr Tanti Burlò hit the bookshelves, this time revolving around President Eddie Fenech Adami's time as Prime Minister.

Launched just on the eve of Malta's European Union accession, the book "blames" the former Premier for EU membership. Aptly titled Blame It On Ed!, it traces Malta's march into the EU. The artist said this time the "blame" was positive and was intended to mark the former Prime Minister's work towards EU accession.

The President has already received a copy of the 117-cartoon book, and Mr Tanti Burlò said he had been pleasantly surprised by his reaction since the comments he received about his cartoons were not always complimentary.

"There have been times when people complained about my cartoons but afterwards they realise that they are not intended to hurt and that they never attack the person himself," he said.

Mr Tanti Burlò admits he is very passionate about his cartoons and does it not as a job but because he loves it.

Asked how he is able to turn a person into a caricature, Mr Tanti Burlò said it was difficult to explain the process. The idea behind a caricature sometimes stemmed from a single word uttered by the person featured in a cartoon.

"Sometimes I finish a cartoon in five minutes and in other times I spend a week pondering an idea, tearing up a number of attempts in the process," he said.

He explained that the important elements are the eyes, nose and mouth and if the cartoonist gets those right, he can do whatever he wants with the picture.

The cartoonist has kept all his cartoons since 1977, together with correspondence about them and some day they will pass on to his 17-year-old son, Sebastian, who has already published some cartoons himself.

What stemmed from anger at a politician has turned the artist into a thrice-published cartoonist. Mr Tanti Burlò's first book Nalizperla was published in 1981.

Asked whether there were any plans for a fourth book, Mr Tanti Burlò said that although he had none at the moment, he was sure that Opposition Leader Alfred Sant would "some day do something and I will Blame It On Fred!"

Austin Bencini, on behalf of Progress Press, said the company was honoured to be publishing the book. He said it was historically appropriate that the publication marking Malta's EU accession had as its subject Dr Fenech Adami, who obviously played an important role in the accession process, and was also the work of one of Malta's leading cartoonists.

The book includes a number of comments by people who were involved in Malta's EU negotiations, including EU Enlargement Commissioner Gunter Verheugen, former Foreign Affairs Minister Joe Borg and President Emeritus Guido de Marco.

Dr Bencini said Mr Tanti Burlò, who is known as Nalizperla, had taught people to view the serious matter of politics from a different perspective and treat it with a smile.

On a similar note, the cartoonist said: "The profane aspect of hope is the caricature of despair".

Blame It On Ed! can also be bought online through the book store at timesofmalta. com and a bookstall selling the book will be set up at Pinto Wharf opposite Viset during the festivities.

Mr Tanti Burlò will be signing books between today and Saturday at various bookshops.