Product Description

"Peanuts" is the most popular comic strip in the history of the world. Its characters - Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Lucy, Linus, Schroeder, and so many more - have become dearly loved icons for generation after generation. Now Charles Schulz's classic, "Peanuts", will be reprinted in its entirety for the first time. In these beautifully produced editions, the strip will be presented in full in chronological order. They will be the ultimate books for "Peanuts'" fans the world over. These first volumes will be of particular fascination to "Peanuts" aficionados. Many of the strips from the series' first two or three years have never been collected before, in large part because they showed a young Schulz working out the kinks in his new strip. They include some characterizations and designs that are quite different from the cast we all know. And Snoopy debuts as a puppy!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #9375 in Books
• Published on: 2007-10-18
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 320 pages

Review
"'An extraordinary publishing project.' Time 'So well-done that any reader will be impatient for the rest of the series, but in the meantime this is a book to savour.' Amazon.com 'Now that Schulz is gone, the comic he drew for fifty years looks more eccentric and ingenious all the time.' Washington Post"

Customer Reviews

At last - the complete works. And he hated the title...
I've been hoping for years that somebody would finally decide to republish a complete edition of "Peanuts". And Fantagraphics have finally done it. This is the first of a series of (roughly) 20 volumes, to be brought out at six-month intervals, comprising every single Peanuts strip that ever made it into print. It's a mountain, but like all good mountains, it contains treasure. Peanuts' reputation has been soiled by the association with greeting cards and general feelgood marketing hoo-hah, and it's gratifying to learn from an interview in this book that this seems to have bothered Schulz himself in later years.

In these first couple of years, he hasn't quite hit his mature style - that flat, side-on, deadpan, almost existential chilliness that characterises the best work. The characters are still being played around with; it takes him a few months to get Lucy's eyes right, and Charlie Brown has a wiseguy quality that seems quite peculiar, if you haven't read these early ones before. But the evidence is there. "Peanuts" (Schulz hated the title, which was imposed by United Features - he thought it undignified) was always the saddest and darkest of comic strips. Charlie Brown's loneliness, Linus' scholarly naivete, Lucy's aggression, Snoopy's indifference are only ever temporarily soothed. These early strips tend to be excessively wordy, and Schulz is a little too fond of showing off what a good draughtsman he is, but from the very first strip ("Good ol' Charlie Brown...How I hate him!") he knows where he's going.

There's an intelligent foreword by Garrison Keillor, and a good afterword by David Michaelis, who is working on a biography. There's also a long and fascinating late 80s interview with Schulz, in which he comes across as modest, self-doubting, a natural worrier and a thoroughly conflicted human being - sound familiar? - but also remarkably opinionated and certain when it comes to his job: he respects Robert Crumb, but not Garry Trudeau, who he regards as "unprofessional". Those who've been put off by books like "The Gospel according to Peanuts" will be surprised to learn that he accepted the term "secular humanist" to describe himself, and if his evident distaste for Trudeau's work can be ascribed to his disapproval of political satire, I'll never forget a wonderfully mordant strip he wrote at the height of the Vietnam war. Marooned at summer camp, Linus gives a campfire speech in which he quotes some stirring Biblical passages on our loved ones overseas - and then throws all his credibility away by inquiring "Incidentally, has anyone here ever heard of the Great Pumpkin?"

It's not just Peanuts fans or comic fans who should buy this book. Schulz was one of the most widely-read and influential artist/writers of the last century. Anyone with an interest in what millions of people read every day should keep up with this edition, which is beautifully produced and admirably discreet in the presentation. Just like the work of its creator, then. Top marks to Fantagraphics and to everyone else involved. I think the author would have been embarrassed but pleased by the whole thing.

This is a must have
Finally we can see how it al began for Chuck and the gang. This book is the first of 20 that will reprint for the first time all 17,897 'Peanuts' Dallies and Sundays. This covers the first two years. Although ignores the earlier 'Lil'Folks' which first introduces Patty, Charlie Brown and a puppy much like Snoopy. These are reprinted in 'Peanuts the art of Charles Shultz'.
There are some differences between the early 'Peanuts' here and the later ones. For a start both Linus and Lucy debut as babies. Snoopy is a curious puppy, and some characters who later vanish have starring roles. Sharmy, Patty and Violet had all vanished by the end of the `70's (Patty is different to Peppermint Patty who didn't arrive until 1966). But the feel of the strip is there from day one.
Important event's in the book are Charlie Browns first attempts at kicking the football (but it is Violet and not Lucy who holds it for him. Pulling away because she fears that Charlie will kick her hand) Schroder learns Piano in a day, and Snoopy thinks his first words.
I personally can't wait till the next book, and will keep on buying till I have the whole lot!

The Complete Peanuts, 1951 - 52
I have been looking forward to the publication of this book ever since I read a preview. There is usually very little material from the earliest years in any Peanuts collection, and it's rare to come across any old paperback copies. It was very interesting to see how different some of the characters were – Charlie Brown changes a lot later on, whereas although Lucy first appears as a little baby, it doesn't take long for her future bossy character to start emerging. Until it does, it makes quite a change to see her as the underdog in the group of girls! Snoopy is still very much just a dog – it's not even clear that he belongs to Charlie Brown. The inclusion of an index was very helpful; although it isn't totally comprehensive it makes it much easier to follow certain developments. To take Snoopy as an example, you can pick out his first thought balloon, and then the first sequence of them. Not that it was ever time wasted when we spent hours looking through several anthologies trying to find one specific strip! I also enjoyed Garrison Keillor's introduction; less so the interview with Schulz at the back of the book. But I would have no hesitation in recommending this book to any Peanuts fan, and will be eagerly waiting for the next volume to be released.