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 Customer Reviews
Nostalgic, 07 Nov 2008
Bought it today, surprisingly alot bigger (not to mention heavier!) than i expected, but nevertheless, will be nostalgic going through every strip again having a laugh all the way! hope everyone else who decides to buys it will be enjoying it as much as i do!
Fantastic!, 17 Aug 2008
Brilliant. Just Brilliant. I've always loved the cartoons, but with this collection I got far more than I expected. As below, when I ordered this I was prepared for something slightly bigger than a DVD boxed set - what I got is a collection about A4 height (from there you can probably get an idea of scale from the picture supplied) and packed solid with cartoons. Apart from the obligatory Author's introduction, each page contains 4 regular strips or one large colour strip. The books are well finished and give the impression that, well treated, they will last a lifetime of reading. The paper is thick and durable, which adds to the weight of the collection but you won't be accidentaly tearing pages while flicking through. In fact, the whole thing seems to have been designed with longevity in mind.
I won't go on about how good the cartoons are - if you're looking at this item you probably already know that. If not, the fact so many people have forked out £40-60 for the privilege of owning it should be evidence enough. What I can say is that if you know you're looking for a collection of Calvin and Hobbes cartoons, the price of this collection is fully justified by the build quality. It would make an excellent gift or, as in my case, an excellent bit of self-indulgence, and will give years of smiles and laughter.
Well worth it's weight!, 24 Jun 2008
The other reviews here pretty much say it all... if you are a fan of Calvin and Hobbes, you are going to love this! And, if you are already a fan, you will undoubtedly own a few worn-out copies of the various collections. I already have most, if not all of the books;
what makes this special and worth having (..in addition!) is the beautiful presentation, in chronological order, of all the strips, with the large cover art added throughout.
It is big, it is heavy, but bearing in mind that it will probably stay put and be well looked after, I don't see any problem with this! It's obviously not intended to be lugged about as your sole copy, and it's nice to have a nice hardback volume to sit and read. If you want portable, take one of your paperbacks. If you want your favourite (and the best, most imaginative, philosophical, entertaining cartoon strip ever) in 3 well-made volumes, then you should really add this to your bookshelf. I just did, having read the previous reviews, and I love it already!
(I've read Calvin and Hobbes through many times, and they just don't date either.. Calvin's comments about the advertising industry, and his Dad's views about t.v, the media, traffic etc are as funny and relevant today as when they were written.)
Not much more to say... if you love Calvin and Hobbes, this collection really is well worth it's weight.
When cartoons grew up, 23 May 2008
I just got back from my post office here in Oslo Norway. The little woman who went back to get this package for me looked less than thrilled. This is HEAVY!
Well, anyhow, I just had my first look at this and it's stunning. Calvin and Hobbes deserve no less.
1987. It's been that many years since I was in Denmark on holiday and bought my first volume of Calvin and Hobbes? (Steen & Stoffer in Danish, Tommy & Tigern in Norwegian). Wow, how time flies.
Calvin and Hobbes have been a great influence on me. I have tried and failed over the years to be a cartoonist or graphic artist myself, but my failure aside, this series really pushed me in conveying ideas with simple yet effective drawings. And that's the crux of this whole success. Amazing yet simple art, effective storytelling, heart, cheekyness, flights of fantasy and even a bit of insanity.
Calvin and Hobbes is all about lost youth to me, and I always pictured the last Calvin and Hobbes showing Calvin walking past Hobbes, with Hobbes no longer a living tiger, but being just a stuffed toy. Calvin realising that this time of his life is over, bursting into tears, and running to his mother for comfort.
Instead he left us, looking for adventure in the woods behind his house with his best friend, destined to live forever in an endless summer.
When a cartoon gets to you on so many levels, does it seize being a cartoon? I'm not sure you can even use the word about something as monumental as this, but don't let that put you off. This is great literature, and you should own it simply to show people that you are a kid at heart, and that you know a great body of work when you see it.
Absolutely fantastic!, 05 Apr 2008
This item contains every single Calvin and Hobbes cartoon ever published.
The three volumes also contain some additional material written by Bill Watterson.
It's interesting to see how the style developed, especially in the first book where Watterson describes the origins of Calvin and Hobbes. The early cartoon strips are of a visibly different standard to those later on.
I love Calvin and Hobbes and this has kept me quiet for hours.
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Customer Reviews
Nostalgic, 07 Nov 2008
Bought it today, surprisingly alot bigger (not to mention heavier!) than i expected, but nevertheless, will be nostalgic going through every strip again having a laugh all the way! hope everyone else who decides to buys it will be enjoying it as much as i do!
Fantastic!, 17 Aug 2008
Brilliant. Just Brilliant. I've always loved the cartoons, but with this collection I got far more than I expected. As below, when I ordered this I was prepared for something slightly bigger than a DVD boxed set - what I got is a collection about A4 height (from there you can probably get an idea of scale from the picture supplied) and packed solid with cartoons. Apart from the obligatory Author's introduction, each page contains 4 regular strips or one large colour strip. The books are well finished and give the impression that, well treated, they will last a lifetime of reading. The paper is thick and durable, which adds to the weight of the collection but you won't be accidentaly tearing pages while flicking through. In fact, the whole thing seems to have been designed with longevity in mind.
I won't go on about how good the cartoons are - if you're looking at this item you probably already know that. If not, the fact so many people have forked out £40-60 for the privilege of owning it should be evidence enough. What I can say is that if you know you're looking for a collection of Calvin and Hobbes cartoons, the price of this collection is fully justified by the build quality. It would make an excellent gift or, as in my case, an excellent bit of self-indulgence, and will give years of smiles and laughter.
Well worth it's weight!, 24 Jun 2008
The other reviews here pretty much say it all... if you are a fan of Calvin and Hobbes, you are going to love this! And, if you are already a fan, you will undoubtedly own a few worn-out copies of the various collections. I already have most, if not all of the books;
what makes this special and worth having (..in addition!) is the beautiful presentation, in chronological order, of all the strips, with the large cover art added throughout.
It is big, it is heavy, but bearing in mind that it will probably stay put and be well looked after, I don't see any problem with this! It's obviously not intended to be lugged about as your sole copy, and it's nice to have a nice hardback volume to sit and read. If you want portable, take one of your paperbacks. If you want your favourite (and the best, most imaginative, philosophical, entertaining cartoon strip ever) in 3 well-made volumes, then you should really add this to your bookshelf. I just did, having read the previous reviews, and I love it already!
(I've read Calvin and Hobbes through many times, and they just don't date either.. Calvin's comments about the advertising industry, and his Dad's views about t.v, the media, traffic etc are as funny and relevant today as when they were written.)
Not much more to say... if you love Calvin and Hobbes, this collection really is well worth it's weight.
When cartoons grew up, 23 May 2008
I just got back from my post office here in Oslo Norway. The little woman who went back to get this package for me looked less than thrilled. This is HEAVY!
Well, anyhow, I just had my first look at this and it's stunning. Calvin and Hobbes deserve no less.
1987. It's been that many years since I was in Denmark on holiday and bought my first volume of Calvin and Hobbes? (Steen & Stoffer in Danish, Tommy & Tigern in Norwegian). Wow, how time flies.
Calvin and Hobbes have been a great influence on me. I have tried and failed over the years to be a cartoonist or graphic artist myself, but my failure aside, this series really pushed me in conveying ideas with simple yet effective drawings. And that's the crux of this whole success. Amazing yet simple art, effective storytelling, heart, cheekyness, flights of fantasy and even a bit of insanity.
Calvin and Hobbes is all about lost youth to me, and I always pictured the last Calvin and Hobbes showing Calvin walking past Hobbes, with Hobbes no longer a living tiger, but being just a stuffed toy. Calvin realising that this time of his life is over, bursting into tears, and running to his mother for comfort.
Instead he left us, looking for adventure in the woods behind his house with his best friend, destined to live forever in an endless summer.
When a cartoon gets to you on so many levels, does it seize being a cartoon? I'm not sure you can even use the word about something as monumental as this, but don't let that put you off. This is great literature, and you should own it simply to show people that you are a kid at heart, and that you know a great body of work when you see it.
Absolutely fantastic!, 05 Apr 2008
This item contains every single Calvin and Hobbes cartoon ever published.
The three volumes also contain some additional material written by Bill Watterson.
It's interesting to see how the style developed, especially in the first book where Watterson describes the origins of Calvin and Hobbes. The early cartoon strips are of a visibly different standard to those later on.
I love Calvin and Hobbes and this has kept me quiet for hours.
The Days are Just Packed, 13 Jun 2008
As a Calvin and Hobbes enthusiast, I must point out that "The Days are Just Packed!" is my personal favourite of all the albums ever released. While there is not a single Calvin and Hobbes album that is short of excellence, this one in particular stands out in my preference because it features what is possibly the best streak of excellent strips ever made in the Calvin and Hobbes world.
Everything in this album will be thoroughly appreciated by every Calvin and hobbes fan and while it features strips published at a time when all the characters were fully developed (the album was originally released in 1993), it will leave a strong impression in a new reader who has just been introduced to the Calvin and Hobbes universe.
If there is one highlight to point in this album, it has to be the series of strips where Calvin must write and illustrate an assignment for school - truly, a classic involving virtually everything we cherish about Calvin and Hobbes.
Bill Waterson's gift to the world, 17 Oct 2007
If you like Calvin and Hobbes and are looking for a good C&H book to adorn your bookshelves - then this is the best one to get.
To start with, Bill Waterson discusses the history of Calvin and Hobbes and the inspiration behind it. He writes about the struggles he's had with them and the pressures applied to commercialise them more. Another reviewer here has said that he respects him for sticking to his guns about that - as do I.
The book is full of comic strips, some black and white, some are full colour. The strips which ran as a serialisation are all shown together. Bill also goes into the stories behind the story, he explains why he did what he did, what he was trying to achieve, and throws in other tasty morsels of information.
The sketches themselves are fantastic, they are incredibly cute and incredibly funny. Innocent fun at its absolute best.
For anyone not familiar with Calvin and Hobbes...
Calvin is a six year old boy, he has a toy stuffed tiger called Hobbes. In Calvin's head - Hobbs is a real Tiger and together they go on adventures. The strips normally depict Calvin and Hobbes getting into weird and wonderful situations, and often show the actual events too - i.e; a duplication machine will turn out to be a cardboard box. Calvin is the kid with the crazy and outlandish imagination, Hobbes tends to chip in with wonderfully dry comments.
There are other characters who appear too, notably his neighbour Susie. She is the polar-opposite of Calvin; serious and well mannered.
Bill has created a fantastic little person with Calvin. He often talks using comically long words and articulate terms well beyond his age.
Perfect for picking up and flicking through for a few minutes, or for having a session with. Everytime I read a bit of this I put it down with a smile on my face.
Beware if you have other books of Calvin and Hobbes, 11 Sep 2007
This book is just the same as the first Calvin and Hobbes compilation book entitled "Calvin and Hobbes" (published 1988 has a white cover with numerous pictures on it). This series is just the first book broken up into three volumes. I would advise you to skip this book and buy the book called "Calvin and Hobbes" as it is a single volume and contains all the same cartoons as the three volumes in this series, and is cheaper.
Don't make the same mistake I did by thinking it was a separate book with new cartoons. Beware also as some of the other Calvin and Hobbes treasuries are just reprints containing older books.
Oh Dear..., 09 Aug 2007
I bought this because many previous reviews refer to essays by the author [and some coloured images.] but this copy contains only cartoons that are available in other collections. Calvin & Hobbes are wonderful, and this is a smaller format than the other collections, just so long as you know what you're getting...
Very nice book, 10 Apr 2006
This is a very nice book - the drawings are large and pleasing to the eye, and every few black and white pages there is one in colour! The printing is very nice, and complements the cartoons very well.
If you have not read any Calvin and Hobbes before, do try some! They depict very well the imagination of a young six year old, and make you wish you could return to those days! Some of this is possible simply by reading Calvin and Hobbes. Do try it! I'm sure you'll love it!
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Customer Reviews
Nostalgic, 07 Nov 2008
Bought it today, surprisingly alot bigger (not to mention heavier!) than i expected, but nevertheless, will be nostalgic going through every strip again having a laugh all the way! hope everyone else who decides to buys it will be enjoying it as much as i do! Fantastic!, 17 Aug 2008
Brilliant. Just Brilliant. I've always loved the cartoons, but with this collection I got far more than I expected. As below, when I ordered this I was prepared for something slightly bigger than a DVD boxed set - what I got is a collection about A4 height (from there you can probably get an idea of scale from the picture supplied) and packed solid with cartoons. Apart from the obligatory Author's introduction, each page contains 4 regular strips or one large colour strip. The books are well finished and give the impression that, well treated, they will last a lifetime of reading. The paper is thick and durable, which adds to the weight of the collection but you won't be accidentaly tearing pages while flicking through. In fact, the whole thing seems to have been designed with longevity in mind.
I won't go on about how good the cartoons are - if you're looking at this item you probably already know that. If not, the fact so many people have forked out £40-60 for the privilege of owning it should be evidence enough. What I can say is that if you know you're looking for a collection of Calvin and Hobbes cartoons, the price of this collection is fully justified by the build quality. It would make an excellent gift or, as in my case, an excellent bit of self-indulgence, and will give years of smiles and laughter. Well worth it's weight!, 24 Jun 2008
The other reviews here pretty much say it all... if you are a fan of Calvin and Hobbes, you are going to love this! And, if you are already a fan, you will undoubtedly own a few worn-out copies of the various collections. I already have most, if not all of the books;
what makes this special and worth having (..in addition!) is the beautiful presentation, in chronological order, of all the strips, with the large cover art added throughout.
It is big, it is heavy, but bearing in mind that it will probably stay put and be well looked after, I don't see any problem with this! It's obviously not intended to be lugged about as your sole copy, and it's nice to have a nice hardback volume to sit and read. If you want portable, take one of your paperbacks. If you want your favourite (and the best, most imaginative, philosophical, entertaining cartoon strip ever) in 3 well-made volumes, then you should really add this to your bookshelf. I just did, having read the previous reviews, and I love it already!
(I've read Calvin and Hobbes through many times, and they just don't date either.. Calvin's comments about the advertising industry, and his Dad's views about t.v, the media, traffic etc are as funny and relevant today as when they were written.)
Not much more to say... if you love Calvin and Hobbes, this collection really is well worth it's weight. When cartoons grew up, 23 May 2008
I just got back from my post office here in Oslo Norway. The little woman who went back to get this package for me looked less than thrilled. This is HEAVY!
Well, anyhow, I just had my first look at this and it's stunning. Calvin and Hobbes deserve no less.
1987. It's been that many years since I was in Denmark on holiday and bought my first volume of Calvin and Hobbes? (Steen & Stoffer in Danish, Tommy & Tigern in Norwegian). Wow, how time flies.
Calvin and Hobbes have been a great influence on me. I have tried and failed over the years to be a cartoonist or graphic artist myself, but my failure aside, this series really pushed me in conveying ideas with simple yet effective drawings. And that's the crux of this whole success. Amazing yet simple art, effective storytelling, heart, cheekyness, flights of fantasy and even a bit of insanity.
Calvin and Hobbes is all about lost youth to me, and I always pictured the last Calvin and Hobbes showing Calvin walking past Hobbes, with Hobbes no longer a living tiger, but being just a stuffed toy. Calvin realising that this time of his life is over, bursting into tears, and running to his mother for comfort.
Instead he left us, looking for adventure in the woods behind his house with his best friend, destined to live forever in an endless summer.
When a cartoon gets to you on so many levels, does it seize being a cartoon? I'm not sure you can even use the word about something as monumental as this, but don't let that put you off. This is great literature, and you should own it simply to show people that you are a kid at heart, and that you know a great body of work when you see it. Absolutely fantastic!, 05 Apr 2008
This item contains every single Calvin and Hobbes cartoon ever published.
The three volumes also contain some additional material written by Bill Watterson.
It's interesting to see how the style developed, especially in the first book where Watterson describes the origins of Calvin and Hobbes. The early cartoon strips are of a visibly different standard to those later on.
I love Calvin and Hobbes and this has kept me quiet for hours. The Days are Just Packed, 13 Jun 2008
As a Calvin and Hobbes enthusiast, I must point out that "The Days are Just Packed!" is my personal favourite of all the albums ever released. While there is not a single Calvin and Hobbes album that is short of excellence, this one in particular stands out in my preference because it features what is possibly the best streak of excellent strips ever made in the Calvin and Hobbes world.
Everything in this album will be thoroughly appreciated by every Calvin and hobbes fan and while it features strips published at a time when all the characters were fully developed (the album was originally released in 1993), it will leave a strong impression in a new reader who has just been introduced to the Calvin and Hobbes universe.
If there is one highlight to point in this album, it has to be the series of strips where Calvin must write and illustrate an assignment for school - truly, a classic involving virtually everything we cherish about Calvin and Hobbes. Bill Waterson's gift to the world, 17 Oct 2007
If you like Calvin and Hobbes and are looking for a good C&H book to adorn your bookshelves - then this is the best one to get.
To start with, Bill Waterson discusses the history of Calvin and Hobbes and the inspiration behind it. He writes about the struggles he's had with them and the pressures applied to commercialise them more. Another reviewer here has said that he respects him for sticking to his guns about that - as do I.
The book is full of comic strips, some black and white, some are full colour. The strips which ran as a serialisation are all shown together. Bill also goes into the stories behind the story, he explains why he did what he did, what he was trying to achieve, and throws in other tasty morsels of information.
The sketches themselves are fantastic, they are incredibly cute and incredibly funny. Innocent fun at its absolute best.
For anyone not familiar with Calvin and Hobbes...
Calvin is a six year old boy, he has a toy stuffed tiger called Hobbes. In Calvin's head - Hobbs is a real Tiger and together they go on adventures. The strips normally depict Calvin and Hobbes getting into weird and wonderful situations, and often show the actual events too - i.e; a duplication machine will turn out to be a cardboard box. Calvin is the kid with the crazy and outlandish imagination, Hobbes tends to chip in with wonderfully dry comments.
There are other characters who appear too, notably his neighbour Susie. She is the polar-opposite of Calvin; serious and well mannered.
Bill has created a fantastic little person with Calvin. He often talks using comically long words and articulate terms well beyond his age.
Perfect for picking up and flicking through for a few minutes, or for having a session with. Everytime I read a bit of this I put it down with a smile on my face.
Beware if you have other books of Calvin and Hobbes, 11 Sep 2007
This book is just the same as the first Calvin and Hobbes compilation book entitled "Calvin and Hobbes" (published 1988 has a white cover with numerous pictures on it). This series is just the first book broken up into three volumes. I would advise you to skip this book and buy the book called "Calvin and Hobbes" as it is a single volume and contains all the same cartoons as the three volumes in this series, and is cheaper.
Don't make the same mistake I did by thinking it was a separate book with new cartoons. Beware also as some of the other Calvin and Hobbes treasuries are just reprints containing older books. Oh Dear..., 09 Aug 2007
I bought this because many previous reviews refer to essays by the author [and some coloured images.] but this copy contains only cartoons that are available in other collections. Calvin & Hobbes are wonderful, and this is a smaller format than the other collections, just so long as you know what you're getting... Very nice book, 10 Apr 2006
This is a very nice book - the drawings are large and pleasing to the eye, and every few black and white pages there is one in colour! The printing is very nice, and complements the cartoons very well. If you have not read any Calvin and Hobbes before, do try some! They depict very well the imagination of a young six year old, and make you wish you could return to those days! Some of this is possible simply by reading Calvin and Hobbes. Do try it! I'm sure you'll love it! "What Did I Just Tell You?" "Beats Me. Weren't You Listening Either?", 11 Jul 2008
And so it began.
This treasury included the strips from the first two collections of the comic strip Calvin and Hobbes. And if you don't know what you have been missing, you are in for a treat.
The comic strip follows the misadventures of Calvin, a highly imaginative, hyperactive six year old. How imaginative? His only real friend is Hobbes, his stuff tiger. But that isn't a problem because Hobbes is really a real tiger, at least in Calvin's mind.
Since this is the first book, things are still being established. But many of the strips staples are here already. We meet Calvin's parents, teacher Miss Wormwood, neighbor Susie Derkins, and bully Moe. We even get the first couple of run ins with babysitter Rosalyn. While we don't get the hilarious social satire that would show up later, we do get some comments on the environment and Calvin's obsession with polls. (He is constantly trying to get his dad to bend to political pressure by showing his standings with household six year olds and tigers.) And we get plenty of adventures from Spaceman Spiff, Calvin's imagination again as he tries to deal with the various aliens in his life like his parents or teacher.
I tend to read the later books more often, so I had forgotten just how go the early strips are until I picked this up. There are so true classics here, most of the time at Calvin's six year old nature. Not that I'd want my kids getting any ideas from Calvin. He doesn't see anything wrong with pounding nails into coffee tables or popping popcorn without the lid on the pot.
And that does bring up the only possible flaw with the book. These strips originally appeared in 1985-1987, so at times they are a little dated. Calvin makes reference to renting a VCR or wanting to get cable. But that doesn't bother me in the slightest.
This "treasury" collects the strips from the first two books. As a bonus, there is a story told in poem form at the beginning and the Sunday strips are in color. If you have the two books, you probably don't need this one. But if you don't have them, this is the way to go.
The day this strip ended was a sad day indeed. But thanks to books like this one, we can relive it over and over again. Funny and touching and so incredibly real, 08 Aug 2005
Bill Watterson's Calvin & Hobbes series is all about six year old Calvin and his tiger Hobbes. Hobbes may seem to be just some soft toy, but with Calvin he truly comes alive, and the two buddies hurtle through life together. Anyone who has been six (so, all of us) will find this series well-observed, touching, and funny. In one strip, our heroes are just getting up to exactly the kind of highjinks we all got up to when we were young (adventures in the woods, building time machines using discarded packing cases, ...). But then on the next page, Calvin's six year old wisdom hits on an aspect of contemporary life, exposing it for the silliness that it is. If you want to remember what it was like to be six, if you ever had an invisible friend or you talked to your teddy bear, if you were ever convinced there were monsters under your bed, or if you just want to laugh out loud, then BUY THIS!
The childhood of Holden Caulfield, 29 Mar 2005
Absolute brilliance. Stories of a 6 year old and his 'tiger' friend and how they see the world. Bill makes it absolutely hilarious though. Philosophy, humour, - it's all here.
A fantastic collection of early Calvin and Hobbes comics, 27 Jun 2004
The Essential Calvin and Hobbes, first published in 1988, is chock full of early Calvin and Hobbes comic strips. No cartoonist, not even Charles Schultz, has captured the magical essence of childhood the way Bill Watterson did in this strip, and it should come as no surprise (although it did to Watterson) that Calvin and Hobbes quickly developed an incredibly loyal following. This strip went way beyond mere popularity. While I was in college, the campus newspaper decided to stop running Calvin and Hobbes (I think this was during one of Watterson's sabbaticals) - this resulted in nothing less than a furor on campus, as countless students immediately demanded the return of C&H. In a matter of days, Calvin and Hobbes were right back where they belonged. How does a comic strip featuring a mischievous six-year-old boy and his stuffed tiger attract a fiercely loyal following of adults? Most adults would love to be children again, to know the freedom and sense of wonder that somehow withers inside the human soul after the onset of puberty. Calvin and Hobbes vividly recreates the feelings and emotions of the very essence of childhood. It brings back memories of things we forgot far too long ago, and it thus reawakens the deepest parts of our ever-hardening souls. Reading this comic strip is the next best thing to being a child yourself. Calvin does everything you used to do: he takes time to stomp in mud puddles, he lets his imagination run wild to make thrilling adventures out of even the most mundane tasks, he ponders the same deep questions you are now, as an adult, afraid to ask, he goes for the gusto no matter what sort of risk is involved, he is in every way a perfect specimen of childhood. Who, as a child, didn't pretend to be a dinosaur, walk around with a hideous expression in hopes of your facing freezing that way, tease the girls (or boys) you claimed to hate, journey to distant worlds unseen by human eyes, etc.? Of course, Hobbes is just as important to the comic strip as Calvin. Hobbes is a tiger, Calvin's best and constant friend, a fellow partaker in the joys of childish innocence. To Calvin, Hobbes really is all that, and that is how we see him as well - until, that is, someone else comes into the frame, when he suddenly becomes nothing more than a stuffed animal. Watterson is a fantastic comic artist, and there is just something captivating about the way he draws Hobbes in his stuffed animal form. Everything about Watterson's art is fantastic, though, particularly the way it captures the emotions of its two principal characters. Sadly, we have only ten years of comic memories in the form of Calvin and Hobbes, as the inscrutable Bill Watterson retired (around the age of 37) in 1995 and quite obviously has no plans of returning to the public arena. Watterson is actually frighteningly private and seems to be living a life of unmatched solitude. I find this extraordinarily sad: here is a man who captured the essence of childhood so vividly in the form of Calvin and Hobbes, a world bursting with life and possibilities, yet now he seems to have withdrawn from life itself. We must be thankful we do have as much Calvin and Hobbes material as we do, and The Essential Calvin and Hobbes, with 255 pages of black and white daily strips and color Sunday strips, features much more than just a chunk of it in and of itself.
perfect Calvin and Hobbes book, 06 Nov 2003
This Calvin & Hobbes book is so funny as many of them are. Every time I read this it is so funny I laugh out loud. Many Calvin & Hobbes books are very funny but this one is so long it took me a long time to read. Most of the others I can read very quickly. I found this book so, so funny I bought loads more. I am trying to collect all of the Calvin & Hobbes books I can get because it is so good. This is a must buy!!! I suggest you get a smaller Calvin & Hobbes book & see if you like it first. If you do buy this!!!
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Customer Reviews
Nostalgic, 07 Nov 2008
Bought it today, surprisingly alot bigger (not to mention heavier!) than i expected, but nevertheless, will be nostalgic going through every strip again having a laugh all the way! hope everyone else who decides to buys it will be enjoying it as much as i do! Fantastic!, 17 Aug 2008
Brilliant. Just Brilliant. I've always loved the cartoons, but with this collection I got far more than I expected. As below, when I ordered this I was prepared for something slightly bigger than a DVD boxed set - what I got is a collection about A4 height (from there you can probably get an idea of scale from the picture supplied) and packed solid with cartoons. Apart from the obligatory Author's introduction, each page contains 4 regular strips or one large colour strip. The books are well finished and give the impression that, well treated, they will last a lifetime of reading. The paper is thick and durable, which adds to the weight of the collection but you won't be accidentaly tearing pages while flicking through. In fact, the whole thing seems to have been designed with longevity in mind.
I won't go on about how good the cartoons are - if you're looking at this item you probably already know that. If not, the fact so many people have forked out £40-60 for the privilege of owning it should be evidence enough. What I can say is that if you know you're looking for a collection of Calvin and Hobbes cartoons, the price of this collection is fully justified by the build quality. It would make an excellent gift or, as in my case, an excellent bit of self-indulgence, and will give years of smiles and laughter. Well worth it's weight!, 24 Jun 2008
The other reviews here pretty much say it all... if you are a fan of Calvin and Hobbes, you are going to love this! And, if you are already a fan, you will undoubtedly own a few worn-out copies of the various collections. I already have most, if not all of the books;
what makes this special and worth having (..in addition!) is the beautiful presentation, in chronological order, of all the strips, with the large cover art added throughout.
It is big, it is heavy, but bearing in mind that it will probably stay put and be well looked after, I don't see any problem with this! It's obviously not intended to be lugged about as your sole copy, and it's nice to have a nice hardback volume to sit and read. If you want portable, take one of your paperbacks. If you want your favourite (and the best, most imaginative, philosophical, entertaining cartoon strip ever) in 3 well-made volumes, then you should really add this to your bookshelf. I just did, having read the previous reviews, and I love it already!
(I've read Calvin and Hobbes through many times, and they just don't date either.. Calvin's comments about the advertising industry, and his Dad's views about t.v, the media, traffic etc are as funny and relevant today as when they were written.)
Not much more to say... if you love Calvin and Hobbes, this collection really is well worth it's weight. When cartoons grew up, 23 May 2008
I just got back from my post office here in Oslo Norway. The little woman who went back to get this package for me looked less than thrilled. This is HEAVY!
Well, anyhow, I just had my first look at this and it's stunning. Calvin and Hobbes deserve no less.
1987. It's been that many years since I was in Denmark on holiday and bought my first volume of Calvin and Hobbes? (Steen & Stoffer in Danish, Tommy & Tigern in Norwegian). Wow, how time flies.
Calvin and Hobbes have been a great influence on me. I have tried and failed over the years to be a cartoonist or graphic artist myself, but my failure aside, this series really pushed me in conveying ideas with simple yet effective drawings. And that's the crux of this whole success. Amazing yet simple art, effective storytelling, heart, cheekyness, flights of fantasy and even a bit of insanity.
Calvin and Hobbes is all about lost youth to me, and I always pictured the last Calvin and Hobbes showing Calvin walking past Hobbes, with Hobbes no longer a living tiger, but being just a stuffed toy. Calvin realising that this time of his life is over, bursting into tears, and running to his mother for comfort.
Instead he left us, looking for adventure in the woods behind his house with his best friend, destined to live forever in an endless summer.
When a cartoon gets to you on so many levels, does it seize being a cartoon? I'm not sure you can even use the word about something as monumental as this, but don't let that put you off. This is great literature, and you should own it simply to show people that you are a kid at heart, and that you know a great body of work when you see it. Absolutely fantastic!, 05 Apr 2008
This item contains every single Calvin and Hobbes cartoon ever published.
The three volumes also contain some additional material written by Bill Watterson.
It's interesting to see how the style developed, especially in the first book where Watterson describes the origins of Calvin and Hobbes. The early cartoon strips are of a visibly different standard to those later on.
I love Calvin and Hobbes and this has kept me quiet for hours. The Days are Just Packed, 13 Jun 2008
As a Calvin and Hobbes enthusiast, I must point out that "The Days are Just Packed!" is my personal favourite of all the albums ever released. While there is not a single Calvin and Hobbes album that is short of excellence, this one in particular stands out in my preference because it features what is possibly the best streak of excellent strips ever made in the Calvin and Hobbes world.
Everything in this album will be thoroughly appreciated by every Calvin and hobbes fan and while it features strips published at a time when all the characters were fully developed (the album was originally released in 1993), it will leave a strong impression in a new reader who has just been introduced to the Calvin and Hobbes universe.
If there is one highlight to point in this album, it has to be the series of strips where Calvin must write and illustrate an assignment for school - truly, a classic involving virtually everything we cherish about Calvin and Hobbes. Bill Waterson's gift to the world, 17 Oct 2007
If you like Calvin and Hobbes and are looking for a good C&H book to adorn your bookshelves - then this is the best one to get.
To start with, Bill Waterson discusses the history of Calvin and Hobbes and the inspiration behind it. He writes about the struggles he's had with them and the pressures applied to commercialise them more. Another reviewer here has said that he respects him for sticking to his guns about that - as do I.
The book is full of comic strips, some black and white, some are full colour. The strips which ran as a serialisation are all shown together. Bill also goes into the stories behind the story, he explains why he did what he did, what he was trying to achieve, and throws in other tasty morsels of information.
The sketches themselves are fantastic, they are incredibly cute and incredibly funny. Innocent fun at its absolute best.
For anyone not familiar with Calvin and Hobbes...
Calvin is a six year old boy, he has a toy stuffed tiger called Hobbes. In Calvin's head - Hobbs is a real Tiger and together they go on adventures. The strips normally depict Calvin and Hobbes getting into weird and wonderful situations, and often show the actual events too - i.e; a duplication machine will turn out to be a cardboard box. Calvin is the kid with the crazy and outlandish imagination, Hobbes tends to chip in with wonderfully dry comments.
There are other characters who appear too, notably his neighbour Susie. She is the polar-opposite of Calvin; serious and well mannered.
Bill has created a fantastic little person with Calvin. He often talks using comically long words and articulate terms well beyond his age.
Perfect for picking up and flicking through for a few minutes, or for having a session with. Everytime I read a bit of this I put it down with a smile on my face.
Beware if you have other books of Calvin and Hobbes, 11 Sep 2007
This book is just the same as the first Calvin and Hobbes compilation book entitled "Calvin and Hobbes" (published 1988 has a white cover with numerous pictures on it). This series is just the first book broken up into three volumes. I would advise you to skip this book and buy the book called "Calvin and Hobbes" as it is a single volume and contains all the same cartoons as the three volumes in this series, and is cheaper.
Don't make the same mistake I did by thinking it was a separate book with new cartoons. Beware also as some of the other Calvin and Hobbes treasuries are just reprints containing older books. Oh Dear..., 09 Aug 2007
I bought this because many previous reviews refer to essays by the author [and some coloured images.] but this copy contains only cartoons that are available in other collections. Calvin & Hobbes are wonderful, and this is a smaller format than the other collections, just so long as you know what you're getting... Very nice book, 10 Apr 2006
This is a very nice book - the drawings are large and pleasing to the eye, and every few black and white pages there is one in colour! The printing is very nice, and complements the cartoons very well. If you have not read any Calvin and Hobbes before, do try some! They depict very well the imagination of a young six year old, and make you wish you could return to those days! Some of this is possible simply by reading Calvin and Hobbes. Do try it! I'm sure you'll love it! "What Did I Just Tell You?" "Beats Me. Weren't You Listening Either?", 11 Jul 2008
And so it began.
This treasury included the strips from the first two collections of the comic strip Calvin and Hobbes. And if you don't know what you have been missing, you are in for a treat.
The comic strip follows the misadventures of Calvin, a highly imaginative, hyperactive six year old. How imaginative? His only real friend is Hobbes, his stuff tiger. But that isn't a problem because Hobbes is really a real tiger, at least in Calvin's mind.
Since this is the first book, things are still being established. But many of the strips staples are here already. We meet Calvin's parents, teacher Miss Wormwood, neighbor Susie Derkins, and bully Moe. We even get the first couple of run ins with babysitter Rosalyn. While we don't get the hilarious social satire that would show up later, we do get some comments on the environment and Calvin's obsession with polls. (He is constantly trying to get his dad to bend to political pressure by showing his standings with household six year olds and tigers.) And we get plenty of adventures from Spaceman Spiff, Calvin's imagination again as he tries to deal with the various aliens in his life like his parents or teacher.
I tend to read the later books more often, so I had forgotten just how go the early strips are until I picked this up. There are so true classics here, most of the time at Calvin's six year old nature. Not that I'd want my kids getting any ideas from Calvin. He doesn't see anything wrong with pounding nails into coffee tables or popping popcorn without the lid on the pot.
And that does bring up the only possible flaw with the book. These strips originally appeared in 1985-1987, so at times they are a little dated. Calvin makes reference to renting a VCR or wanting to get cable. But that doesn't bother me in the slightest.
This "treasury" collects the strips from the first two books. As a bonus, there is a story told in poem form at the beginning and the Sunday strips are in color. If you have the two books, you probably don't need this one. But if you don't have them, this is the way to go.
The day this strip ended was a sad day indeed. But thanks to books like this one, we can relive it over and over again. Funny and touching and so incredibly real, 08 Aug 2005
Bill Watterson's Calvin & Hobbes series is all about six year old Calvin and his tiger Hobbes. Hobbes may seem to be just some soft toy, but with Calvin he truly comes alive, and the two buddies hurtle through life together. Anyone who has been six (so, all of us) will find this series well-observed, touching, and funny. In one strip, our heroes are just getting up to exactly the kind of highjinks we all got up to when we were young (adventures in the woods, building time machines using discarded packing cases, ...). But then on the next page, Calvin's six year old wisdom hits on an aspect of contemporary life, exposing it for the silliness that it is. If you want to remember what it was like to be six, if you ever had an invisible friend or you talked to your teddy bear, if you were ever convinced there were monsters under your bed, or if you just want to laugh out loud, then BUY THIS!
The childhood of Holden Caulfield, 29 Mar 2005
Absolute brilliance. Stories of a 6 year old and his 'tiger' friend and how they see the world. Bill makes it absolutely hilarious though. Philosophy, humour, - it's all here.
A fantastic collection of early Calvin and Hobbes comics, 27 Jun 2004
The Essential Calvin and Hobbes, first published in 1988, is chock full of early Calvin and Hobbes comic strips. No cartoonist, not even Charles Schultz, has captured the magical essence of childhood the way Bill Watterson did in this strip, and it should come as no surprise (although it did to Watterson) that Calvin and Hobbes quickly developed an incredibly loyal following. This strip went way beyond mere popularity. While I was in college, the campus newspaper decided to stop running Calvin and Hobbes (I think this was during one of Watterson's sabbaticals) - this resulted in nothing less than a furor on campus, as countless students immediately demanded the return of C&H. In a matter of days, Calvin and Hobbes were right back where they belonged. How does a comic strip featuring a mischievous six-year-old boy and his stuffed tiger attract a fiercely loyal following of adults? Most adults would love to be children again, to know the freedom and sense of wonder that somehow withers inside the human soul after the onset of puberty. Calvin and Hobbes vividly recreates the feelings and emotions of the very essence of childhood. It brings back memories of things we forgot far too long ago, and it thus reawakens the deepest parts of our ever-hardening souls. Reading this comic strip is the next best thing to being a child yourself. Calvin does everything you used to do: he takes time to stomp in mud puddles, he lets his imagination run wild to make thrilling adventures out of even the most mundane tasks, he ponders the same deep questions you are now, as an adult, afraid to ask, he goes for the gusto no matter what sort of risk is involved, he is in every way a perfect specimen of childhood. Who, as a child, didn't pretend to be a dinosaur, walk around with a hideous expression in hopes of your facing freezing that way, tease the girls (or boys) you claimed to hate, journey to distant worlds unseen by human eyes, etc.? Of course, Hobbes is just as important to the comic strip as Calvin. Hobbes is a tiger, Calvin's best and constant friend, a fellow partaker in the joys of childish innocence. To Calvin, Hobbes really is all that, and that is how we see him as well - until, that is, someone else comes into the frame, when he suddenly becomes nothing more than a stuffed animal. Watterson is a fantastic comic artist, and there is just something captivating about the way he draws Hobbes in his stuffed animal form. Everything about Watterson's art is fantastic, though, particularly the way it captures the emotions of its two principal characters. Sadly, we have only ten years of comic memories in the form of Calvin and Hobbes, as the inscrutable Bill Watterson retired (around the age of 37) in 1995 and quite obviously has no plans of returning to the public arena. Watterson is actually frighteningly private and seems to be living a life of unmatched solitude. I find this extraordinarily sad: here is a man who captured the essence of childhood so vividly in the form of Calvin and Hobbes, a world bursting with life and possibilities, yet now he seems to have withdrawn from life itself. We must be thankful we do have as much Calvin and Hobbes material as we do, and The Essential Calvin and Hobbes, with 255 pages of black and white daily strips and color Sunday strips, features much more than just a chunk of it in and of itself.
perfect Calvin and Hobbes book, 06 Nov 2003
This Calvin & Hobbes book is so funny as many of them are. Every time I read this it is so funny I laugh out loud. Many Calvin & Hobbes books are very funny but this one is so long it took me a long time to read. Most of the others I can read very quickly. I found this book so, so funny I bought loads more. I am trying to collect all of the Calvin & Hobbes books I can get because it is so good. This is a must buy!!! I suggest you get a smaller Calvin & Hobbes book & see if you like it first. If you do buy this!!!
Go for it!, 10 Apr 2006
This is a great Calvin and Hobbes selection, guaranteed to keep you laughing! This selection is published with the cartoons sized down to fit a lot in a small-sized book. If you have enjoyed any of the other Calvin and Hobbes books, then go for it! It is a great selection, and keeps up to the standard of the others. I keep on rereading this - I must have read it about 20 times and I am not sick yet!
A Must Buy!, 17 Nov 2000
Again, Bill Watterson amazes the world with his sense of humour...He not only has 1 Calvin in this book but manages to produce more Calvins, which are 10 times worse than the original Calvin...ahhhhh! I must have read this book more than 10 times and I still laugh out loud at some places. Although a few (very few) of the strips in this book are repeated in his other books, I would recommend it to any Calvin and Hobbes fan or to any first time reader...and if you are a first time reader...take insurance out on your stomach as you will have stomach cramps from all the laughter this book produces...
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Customer Reviews
Nostalgic, 07 Nov 2008
Bought it today, surprisingly alot bigger (not to mention heavier!) than i expected, but nevertheless, will be nostalgic going through every strip again having a laugh all the way! hope everyone else who decides to buys it will be enjoying it as much as i do! Fantastic!, 17 Aug 2008
Brilliant. Just Brilliant. I've always loved the cartoons, but with this collection I got far more than I expected. As below, when I ordered this I was prepared for something slightly bigger than a DVD boxed set - what I got is a collection about A4 height (from there you can probably get an idea of scale from the picture supplied) and packed solid with cartoons. Apart from the obligatory Author's introduction, each page contains 4 regular strips or one large colour strip. The books are well finished and give the impression that, well treated, they will last a lifetime of reading. The paper is thick and durable, which adds to the weight of the collection but you won't be accidentaly tearing pages while flicking through. In fact, the whole thing seems to have been designed with longevity in mind.
I won't go on about how good the cartoons are - if you're looking at this item you probably already know that. If not, the fact so many people have forked out £40-60 for the privilege of owning it should be evidence enough. What I can say is that if you know you're looking for a collection of Calvin and Hobbes cartoons, the price of this collection is fully justified by the build quality. It would make an excellent gift or, as in my case, an excellent bit of self-indulgence, and will give years of smiles and laughter. Well worth it's weight!, 24 Jun 2008
The other reviews here pretty much say it all... if you are a fan of Calvin and Hobbes, you are going to love this! And, if you are already a fan, you will undoubtedly own a few worn-out copies of the various collections. I already have most, if not all of the books;
what makes this special and worth having (..in addition!) is the beautiful presentation, in chronological order, of all the strips, with the large cover art added throughout.
It is big, it is heavy, but bearing in mind that it will probably stay put and be well looked after, I don't see any problem with this! It's obviously not intended to be lugged about as your sole copy, and it's nice to have a nice hardback volume to sit and read. If you want portable, take one of your paperbacks. If you want your favourite (and the best, most imaginative, philosophical, entertaining cartoon strip ever) in 3 well-made volumes, then you should really add this to your bookshelf. I just did, having read the previous reviews, and I love it already!
(I've read Calvin and Hobbes through many times, and they just don't date either.. Calvin's comments about the advertising industry, and his Dad's views about t.v, the media, traffic etc are as funny and relevant today as when they were written.)
Not much more to say... if you love Calvin and Hobbes, this collection really is well worth it's weight. When cartoons grew up, 23 May 2008
I just got back from my post office here in Oslo Norway. The little woman who went back to get this package for me looked less than thrilled. This is HEAVY!
Well, anyhow, I just had my first look at this and it's stunning. Calvin and Hobbes deserve no less.
1987. It's been that many years since I was in Denmark on holiday and bought my first volume of Calvin and Hobbes? (Steen & Stoffer in Danish, Tommy & Tigern in Norwegian). Wow, how time flies.
Calvin and Hobbes have been a great influence on me. I have tried and failed over the years to be a cartoonist or graphic artist myself, but my failure aside, this series really pushed me in conveying ideas with simple yet effective drawings. And that's the crux of this whole success. Amazing yet simple art, effective storytelling, heart, cheekyness, flights of fantasy and even a bit of insanity.
Calvin and Hobbes is all about lost youth to me, and I always pictured the last Calvin and Hobbes showing Calvin walking past Hobbes, with Hobbes no longer a living tiger, but being just a stuffed toy. Calvin realising that this time of his life is over, bursting into tears, and running to his mother for comfort.
Instead he left us, looking for adventure in the woods behind his house with his best friend, destined to live forever in an endless summer.
When a cartoon gets to you on so many levels, does it seize being a cartoon? I'm not sure you can even use the word about something as monumental as this, but don't let that put you off. This is great literature, and you should own it simply to show people that you are a kid at heart, and that you know a great body of work when you see it. Absolutely fantastic!, 05 Apr 2008
This item contains every single Calvin and Hobbes cartoon ever published.
The three volumes also contain some additional material written by Bill Watterson.
It's interesting to see how the style developed, especially in the first book where Watterson describes the origins of Calvin and Hobbes. The early cartoon strips are of a visibly different standard to those later on.
I love Calvin and Hobbes and this has kept me quiet for hours. The Days are Just Packed, 13 Jun 2008
As a Calvin and Hobbes enthusiast, I must point out that "The Days are Just Packed!" is my personal favourite of all the albums ever released. While there is not a single Calvin and Hobbes album that is short of excellence, this one in particular stands out in my preference because it features what is possibly the best streak of excellent strips ever made in the Calvin and Hobbes world.
Everything in this album will be thoroughly appreciated by every Calvin and hobbes fan and while it features strips published at a time when all the characters were fully developed (the album was originally released in 1993), it will leave a strong impression in a new reader who has just been introduced to the Calvin and Hobbes universe.
If there is one highlight to point in this album, it has to be the series of strips where Calvin must write and illustrate an assignment for school - truly, a classic involving virtually everything we cherish about Calvin and Hobbes. Bill Waterson's gift to the world, 17 Oct 2007
If you like Calvin and Hobbes and are looking for a good C&H book to adorn your bookshelves - then this is the best one to get.
To start with, Bill Waterson discusses the history of Calvin and Hobbes and the inspiration behind it. He writes about the struggles he's had with them and the pressures applied to commercialise them more. Another reviewer here has said that he respects him for sticking to his guns about that - as do I.
The book is full of comic strips, some black and white, some are full colour. The strips which ran as a serialisation are all shown together. Bill also goes into the stories behind the story, he explains why he did what he did, what he was trying to achieve, and throws in other tasty morsels of information.
The sketches themselves are fantastic, they are incredibly cute and incredibly funny. Innocent fun at its absolute best.
For anyone not familiar with Calvin and Hobbes...
Calvin is a six year old boy, he has a toy stuffed tiger called Hobbes. In Calvin's head - Hobbs is a real Tiger and together they go on adventures. The strips normally depict Calvin and Hobbes getting into weird and wonderful situations, and often show the actual events too - i.e; a duplication machine will turn out to be a cardboard box. Calvin is the kid with the crazy and outlandish imagination, Hobbes tends to chip in with wonderfully dry comments.
There are other characters who appear too, notably his neighbour Susie. She is the polar-opposite of Calvin; serious and well mannered.
Bill has created a fantastic little person with Calvin. He often talks using comically long words and articulate terms well beyond his age.
Perfect for picking up and flicking through for a few minutes, or for having a session with. Everytime I read a bit of this I put it down with a smile on my face.
Beware if you have other books of Calvin and Hobbes, 11 Sep 2007
This book is just the same as the first Calvin and Hobbes compilation book entitled "Calvin and Hobbes" (published 1988 has a white cover with numerous pictures on it). This series is just the first book broken up into three volumes. I would advise you to skip this book and buy the book called "Calvin and Hobbes" as it is a single volume and contains all the same cartoons as the three volumes in this series, and is cheaper.
Don't make the same mistake I did by thinking it was a separate book with new cartoons. Beware also as some of the other Calvin and Hobbes treasuries are just reprints containing older books. Oh Dear..., 09 Aug 2007
I bought this because many previous reviews refer to essays by the author [and some coloured images.] but this copy contains only cartoons that are available in other collections. Calvin & Hobbes are wonderful, and this is a smaller format than the other collections, just so long as you know what you're getting... Very nice book, 10 Apr 2006
This is a very nice book - the drawings are large and pleasing to the eye, and every few black and white pages there is one in colour! The printing is very nice, and complements the cartoons very well. If you have not read any Calvin and Hobbes before, do try some! They depict very well the imagination of a young six year old, and make you wish you could return to those days! Some of this is possible simply by reading Calvin and Hobbes. Do try it! I'm sure you'll love it! "What Did I Just Tell You?" "Beats Me. Weren't You Listening Either?", 11 Jul 2008
And so it began.
This treasury included the strips from the first two collections of the comic strip Calvin and Hobbes. And if you don't know what you have been missing, you are in for a treat.
The comic strip follows the misadventures of Calvin, a highly imaginative, hyperactive six year old. How imaginative? His only real friend is Hobbes, his stuff tiger. But that isn't a problem because Hobbes is really a real tiger, at least in Calvin's mind.
Since this is the first book, things are still being established. But many of the strips staples are here already. We meet Calvin's parents, teacher Miss Wormwood, neighbor Susie Derkins, and bully Moe. We even get the first couple of run ins with babysitter Rosalyn. While we don't get the hilarious social satire that would show up later, we do get some comments on the environment and Calvin's obsession with polls. (He is constantly trying to get his dad to bend to political pressure by showing his standings with household six year olds and tigers.) And we get plenty of adventures from Spaceman Spiff, Calvin's imagination again as he tries to deal with the various aliens in his life like his parents or teacher.
I tend to read the later books more often, so I had forgotten just how go the early strips are until I picked this up. There are so true classics here, most of the time at Calvin's six year old nature. Not that I'd want my kids getting any ideas from Calvin. He doesn't see anything wrong with pounding nails into coffee tables or popping popcorn without the lid on the pot.
And that does bring up the only possible flaw with the book. These strips originally appeared in 1985-1987, so at times they are a little dated. Calvin makes reference to renting a VCR or wanting to get cable. But that doesn't bother me in the slightest.
This "treasury" collects the strips from the first two books. As a bonus, there is a story told in poem form at the beginning and the Sunday strips are in color. If you have the two books, you probably don't need this one. But if you don't have them, this is the way to go.
The day this strip ended was a sad day indeed. But thanks to books like this one, we can relive it over and over again. Funny and touching and so incredibly real, 08 Aug 2005
Bill Watterson's Calvin & Hobbes series is all about six year old Calvin and his tiger Hobbes. Hobbes may seem to be just some soft toy, but with Calvin he truly comes alive, and the two buddies hurtle through life together. Anyone who has been six (so, all of us) will find this series well-observed, touching, and funny. In one strip, our heroes are just getting up to exactly the kind of highjinks we all got up to when we were young (adventures in the woods, building time machines using discarded packing cases, ...). But then on the next page, Calvin's six year old wisdom hits on an aspect of contemporary life, exposing it for the silliness that it is. If you want to remember what it was like to be six, if you ever had an invisible friend or you talked to your teddy bear, if you were ever convinced there were monsters under your bed, or if you just want to laugh out loud, then BUY THIS!
The childhood of Holden Caulfield, 29 Mar 2005
Absolute brilliance. Stories of a 6 year old and his 'tiger' friend and how they see the world. Bill makes it absolutely hilarious though. Philosophy, humour, - it's all here.
A fantastic collection of early Calvin and Hobbes comics, 27 Jun 2004
The Essential Calvin and Hobbes, first published in 1988, is chock full of early Calvin and Hobbes comic strips. No cartoonist, not even Charles Schultz, has captured the magical essence of childhood the way Bill Watterson did in this strip, and it should come as no surprise (although it did to Watterson) that Calvin and Hobbes quickly developed an incredibly loyal following. This strip went way beyond mere popularity. While I was in college, the campus newspaper decided to stop running Calvin and Hobbes (I think this was during one of Watterson's sabbaticals) - this resulted in nothing less than a furor on campus, as countless students immediately demanded the return of C&H. In a matter of days, Calvin and Hobbes were right back where they belonged. How does a comic strip featuring a mischievous six-year-old boy and his stuffed tiger attract a fiercely loyal following of adults? Most adults would love to be children again, to know the freedom and sense of wonder that somehow withers inside the human soul after the onset of puberty. Calvin and Hobbes vividly recreates the feelings and emotions of the very essence of childhood. It brings back memories of things we forgot far too long ago, and it thus reawakens the deepest parts of our ever-hardening souls. Reading this comic strip is the next best thing to being a child yourself. Calvin does everything you used to do: he takes time to stomp in mud puddles, he lets his imagination run wild to make thrilling adventures out of even the most mundane tasks, he ponders the same deep questions you are now, as an adult, afraid to ask, he goes for the gusto no matter what sort of risk is involved, he is in every way a perfect specimen of childhood. Who, as a child, didn't pretend to be a dinosaur, walk around with a hideous expression in hopes of your facing freezing that way, tease the girls (or boys) you claimed to hate, journey to distant worlds unseen by human eyes, etc.? Of course, Hobbes is just as important to the comic strip as Calvin. Hobbes is a tiger, Calvin's best and constant friend, a fellow partaker in the joys of childish innocence. To Calvin, Hobbes really is all that, and that is how we see him as well - until, that is, someone else comes into the frame, when he suddenly becomes nothing more than a stuffed animal. Watterson is a fantastic comic artist, and there is just something captivating about the way he draws Hobbes in his stuffed animal form. Everything about Watterson's art is fantastic, though, particularly the way it captures the emotions of its two principal characters. Sadly, we have only ten years of comic memories in the form of Calvin and Hobbes, as the inscrutable Bill Watterson retired (around the age of 37) in 1995 and quite obviously has no plans of returning to the public arena. Watterson is actually frighteningly private and seems to be living a life of unmatched solitude. I find this extraordinarily sad: here is a man who captured the essence of childhood so vividly in the form of Calvin and Hobbes, a world bursting with life and possibilities, yet now he seems to have withdrawn from life itself. We must be thankful we do have as much Calvin and Hobbes material as we do, and The Essential Calvin and Hobbes, with 255 pages of black and white daily strips and color Sunday strips, features much more than just a chunk of it in and of itself.
perfect Calvin and Hobbes book, 06 Nov 2003
This Calvin & Hobbes book is so funny as many of them are. Every time I read this it is so funny I laugh out loud. Many Calvin & Hobbes books are very funny but this one is so long it took me a long time to read. Most of the others I can read very quickly. I found this book so, so funny I bought loads more. I am trying to collect all of the Calvin & Hobbes books I can get because it is so good. This is a must buy!!! I suggest you get a smaller Calvin & Hobbes book & see if you like it first. If you do buy this!!!
Go for it!, 10 Apr 2006
This is a great Calvin and Hobbes selection, guaranteed to keep you laughing! This selection is published with the cartoons sized down to fit a lot in a small-sized book. If you have enjoyed any of the other Calvin and Hobbes books, then go for it! It is a great selection, and keeps up to the standard of the others. I keep on rereading this - I must have read it about 20 times and I am not sick yet!
A Must Buy!, 17 Nov 2000
Again, Bill Watterson amazes the world with his sense of humour...He not only has 1 Calvin in this book but manages to produce more Calvins, which are 10 times worse than the original Calvin...ahhhhh! I must have read this book more than 10 times and I still laugh out loud at some places. Although a few (very few) of the strips in this book are repeated in his other books, I would recommend it to any Calvin and Hobbes fan or to any first time reader...and if you are a first time reader...take insurance out on your stomach as you will have stomach cramps from all the laughter this book produces...
"...FURTHER BULLETINS AS EVENTS WARRENT!", 25 Oct 2003
Calvin and Hobbes are the funniest comic strips ever created. Although Watterson has retired and does not write them anymore, it's still great to have the collections. "Something Under the Bed is Drooling" is a collection of earlier Calvin and Hobbes stips. The old ones are the best, I think. Every page is guarenteed to make you laugh. The book is hillarious and it's fun to watch Calvin in action as he takes on his grumpy teacher, monsters, the deranged babysitter, the girl from next store, and of course, his aggravated parents. I can never get tired of Calvin and Hobbes. Anytime that I'm feeling down or if I'm just having a god-awful day, as soon as I pick up a Calvin and Hobbes book and start reading, I'm immediately feeling better and laughing aloud. I don't care how old you are, these are ALWAYS a joy to read (especially this particular collection). One of the funniest strips in the book is when Calvin is writing on a sheet of paper and Hobbes asks him what he is doing. Calvin tells him that he is writing his autobiography. Hobbes is confused and tells him that he's only six. Calvin simply answers, "I only have one sheet of paper." With great comics like Calvin and Hobbes, no one is too old to enjoy them. I say buy them all while you still can. They're great to read over and over again. "Something Under the Bed is Drooling" is a fine collection of great Calvin and Hobbes strips, and it continues to be one of my favourite collections.
Fantastic, 28 Apr 2001
I have been reading the calvin and hobbes' series ever since they first came out, and they just keep getting better and better. All of the books are amazing and everyone of them deserves 5 stars. Unfortunatly, Bill Watterson has stopped writing the books, which, in my eyes is a great shame. Buy this book, buy all the books. You will come back to them time and time again, and they are still funny. Even after the 50th time!!
The book is outstandingly funny and witty, 27 Aug 1999
A wonderful book.The storys are so funny your sides hurt.the fact that someone can draw three pictures and and make you laugh your head off is fantastic.Bill watterson is an amazingly funny person and this book proves it.A must have if you want a luagh.
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Customer Reviews
Nostalgic, 07 Nov 2008
Bought it today, surprisingly alot bigger (not to mention heavier!) than i expected, but nevertheless, will be nostalgic going through every strip again having a laugh all the way! hope everyone else who decides to buys it will be enjoying it as much as i do! Fantastic!, 17 Aug 2008
Brilliant. Just Brilliant. I've always loved the cartoons, but with this collection I got far more than I expected. As below, when I ordered this I was prepared for something slightly bigger than a DVD boxed set - what I got is a collection about A4 height (from there you can probably get an idea of scale from the picture supplied) and packed solid with cartoons. Apart from the obligatory Author's introduction, each page contains 4 regular strips or one large colour strip. The books are well finished and give the impression that, well treated, they will last a lifetime of reading. The paper is thick and durable, which adds to the weight of the collection but you won't be accidentaly tearing pages while flicking through. In fact, the whole thing seems to have been designed with longevity in mind.
I won't go on about how good the cartoons are - if you're looking at this item you probably already know that. If not, the fact so many people have forked out £40-60 for the privilege of owning it should be evidence enough. What I can say is that if you know you're looking for a collection of Calvin and Hobbes cartoons, the price of this collection is fully justified by the build quality. It would make an excellent gift or, as in my case, an excellent bit of self-indulgence, and will give years of smiles and laughter. Well worth it's weight!, 24 Jun 2008
The other reviews here pretty much say it all... if you are a fan of Calvin and Hobbes, you are going to love this! And, if you are already a fan, you will undoubtedly own a few worn-out copies of the various collections. I already have most, if not all of the books;
what makes this special and worth having (..in addition!) is the beautiful presentation, in chronological order, of all the strips, with the large cover art added throughout.
It is big, it is heavy, but bearing in mind that it will probably stay put and be well looked after, I don't see any problem with this! It's obviously not intended to be lugged about as your sole copy, and it's nice to have a nice hardback volume to sit and read. If you want portable, take one of your paperbacks. If you want your favourite (and the best, most imaginative, philosophical, entertaining cartoon strip ever) in 3 well-made volumes, then you should really add this to your bookshelf. I just did, having read the previous reviews, and I love it already!
(I've read Calvin and Hobbes through many times, and they just don't date either.. Calvin's comments about the advertising industry, and his Dad's views about t.v, the media, traffic etc are as funny and relevant today as when they were written.)
Not much more to say... if you love Calvin and Hobbes, this collection really is well worth it's weight. When cartoons grew up, 23 May 2008
I just got back from my post office here in Oslo Norway. The little woman who went back to get this package for me looked less than thrilled. This is HEAVY!
Well, anyhow, I just had my first look at this and it's stunning. Calvin and Hobbes deserve no less.
1987. It's been that many years since I was in Denmark on holiday and bought my first volume of Calvin and Hobbes? (Steen & Stoffer in Danish, Tommy & Tigern in Norwegian). Wow, how time flies.
Calvin and Hobbes have been a great influence on me. I have tried and failed over the years to be a cartoonist or graphic artist myself, but my failure aside, this series really pushed me in conveying ideas with simple yet effective drawings. And that's the crux of this whole success. Amazing yet simple art, effective storytelling, heart, cheekyness, flights of fantasy and even a bit of insanity.
Calvin and Hobbes is all about lost youth to me, and I always pictured the last Calvin and Hobbes showing Calvin walking past Hobbes, with Hobbes no longer a living tiger, but being just a stuffed toy. Calvin realising that this time of his life is over, bursting into tears, and running to his mother for comfort.
Instead he left us, looking for adventure in the woods behind his house with his best friend, destined to live forever in an endless summer.
When a cartoon gets to you on so many levels, does it seize being a cartoon? I'm not sure you can even use the word about something as monumental as this, but don't let that put you off. This is great literature, and you should own it simply to show people that you are a kid at heart, and that you know a great body of work when you see it. Absolutely fantastic!, 05 Apr 2008
This item contains every single Calvin and Hobbes cartoon ever published.
The three volumes also contain some additional material written by Bill Watterson.
It's interesting to see how the style developed, especially in the first book where Watterson describes the origins of Calvin and Hobbes. The early cartoon strips are of a visibly different standard to those later on.
I love Calvin and Hobbes and this has kept me quiet for hours. The Days are Just Packed, 13 Jun 2008
As a Calvin and Hobbes enthusiast, I must point out that "The Days are Just Packed!" is my personal favourite of all the albums ever released. While there is not a single Calvin and Hobbes album that is short of excellence, this one in particular stands out in my preference because it features what is possibly the best streak of excellent strips ever made in the Calvin and Hobbes world.
Everything in this album will be thoroughly appreciated by every Calvin and hobbes fan and while it features strips published at a time when all the characters were fully developed (the album was originally released in 1993), it will leave a strong impression in a new reader who has just been introduced to the Calvin and Hobbes universe.
If there is one highlight to point in this album, it has to be the series of strips where Calvin must write and illustrate an assignment for school - truly, a classic involving virtually everything we cherish about Calvin and Hobbes. Bill Waterson's gift to the world, 17 Oct 2007
If you like Calvin and Hobbes and are looking for a good C&H book to adorn your bookshelves - then this is the best one to get.
To start with, Bill Waterson discusses the history of Calvin and Hobbes and the inspiration behind it. He writes about the struggles he's had with them and the pressures applied to commercialise them more. Another reviewer here has said that he respects him for sticking to his guns about that - as do I.
The book is full of comic strips, some black and white, some are full colour. The strips which ran as a serialisation are all shown together. Bill also goes into the stories behind the story, he explains why he did what he did, what he was trying to achieve, and throws in other tasty morsels of information.
The sketches themselves are fantastic, they are incredibly cute and incredibly funny. Innocent fun at its absolute best.
For anyone not familiar with Calvin and Hobbes...
Calvin is a six year old boy, he has a toy stuffed tiger called Hobbes. In Calvin's head - Hobbs is a real Tiger and together they go on adventures. The strips normally depict Calvin and Hobbes getting into weird and wonderful situations, and often show the actual events too - i.e; a duplication machine will turn out to be a cardboard box. Calvin is the kid with the crazy and outlandish imagination, Hobbes tends to chip in with wonderfully dry comments.
There are other characters who appear too, notably his neighbour Susie. She is the polar-opposite of Calvin; serious and well mannered.
Bill has created a fantastic little person with Calvin. He often talks using comically long words and articulate terms well beyond his age.
Perfect for picking up and flicking through for a few minutes, or for having a session with. Everytime I read a bit of this I put it down with a smile on my face.
Beware if you have other books of Calvin and Hobbes, 11 Sep 2007
This book is just the same as the first Calvin and Hobbes compilation book entitled "Calvin and Hobbes" (published 1988 has a white cover with numerous pictures on it). This series is just the first book broken up into three volumes. I would advise you to skip this book and buy the book called "Calvin and Hobbes" as it is a single volume and contains all the same cartoons as the three volumes in this series, and is cheaper.
Don't make the same mistake I did by thinking it was a separate book with new cartoons. Beware also as some of the other Calvin and Hobbes treasuries are just reprints containing older books. Oh Dear..., 09 Aug 2007
I bought this because many previous reviews refer to essays by the author [and some coloured images.] but this copy contains only cartoons that are available in other collections. Calvin & Hobbes are wonderful, and this is a smaller format than the other collections, just so long as you know what you're getting... Very nice book, 10 Apr 2006
This is a very nice book - the drawings are large and pleasing to the eye, and every few black and white pages there is one in colour! The printing is very nice, and complements the cartoons very well. If you have not read any Calvin and Hobbes before, do try some! They depict very well the imagination of a young six year old, and make you wish you could return to those days! Some of this is possible simply by reading Calvin and Hobbes. Do try it! I'm sure you'll love it! "What Did I Just Tell You?" "Beats Me. Weren't You Listening Either?", 11 Jul 2008
And so it began.
This treasury included the strips from the first two collections of the comic strip Calvin and Hobbes. And if you don't know what you have been missing, you are in for a treat.
The comic strip follows the misadventures of Calvin, a highly imaginative, hyperactive six year old. How imaginative? His only real friend is Hobbes, his stuff tiger. But that isn't a problem because Hobbes is really a real tiger, at least in Calvin's mind.
Since this is the first book, things are still being established. But many of the strips staples are here already. We meet Calvin's parents, teacher Miss Wormwood, neighbor Susie Derkins, and bully Moe. We even get the first couple of run ins with babysitter Rosalyn. While we don't get the hilarious social satire that would show up later, we do get some comments on the environment and Calvin's obsession with polls. (He is constantly trying to get his dad to bend to political pressure by showing his standings with household six year olds and tigers.) And we get plenty of adventures from Spaceman Spiff, Calvin's imagination again as he tries to deal with the various aliens in his life like his parents or teacher.
I tend to read the later books more often, so I had forgotten just how go the early strips are until I picked this up. There are so true classics here, most of the time at Calvin's six year old nature. Not that I'd want my kids getting any ideas from Calvin. He doesn't see anything wrong with pounding nails into coffee tables or popping popcorn without the lid on the pot.
And that does bring up the only possible flaw with the book. These strips originally appeared in 1985-1987, so at times they are a little dated. Calvin makes reference to renting a VCR or wanting to get cable. But that doesn't bother me in the slightest.
This "treasury" collects the strips from the first two books. As a bonus, there is a story told in poem form at the beginning and the Sunday strips are in color. If you have the two books, you probably don't need this one. But if you don't have them, this is the way to go.
The day this strip ended was a sad day indeed. But thanks to books like this one, we can relive it over and over again. Funny and touching and so incredibly real, 08 Aug 2005
Bill Watterson's Calvin & Hobbes series is all about six year old Calvin and his tiger Hobbes. Hobbes may seem to be just some soft toy, but with Calvin he truly comes alive, and the two buddies hurtle through life together. Anyone who has been six (so, all of us) will find this series well-observed, touching, and funny. In one strip, our heroes are just getting up to exactly the kind of highjinks we all got up to when we were young (adventures in the woods, building time machines using discarded packing cases, ...). But then on the next page, Calvin's six year old wisdom hits on an aspect of contemporary life, exposing it for the silliness that it is. If you want to remember what it was like to be six, if you ever had an invisible friend or you talked to your teddy bear, if you were ever convinced there were monsters under your bed, or if you just want to laugh out loud, then BUY THIS!
The childhood of Holden Caulfield, 29 Mar 2005
Absolute brilliance. Stories of a 6 year old and his 'tiger' friend and how they see the world. Bill makes it absolutely hilarious though. Philosophy, humour, - it's all here.
A fantastic collection of early Calvin and Hobbes comics, 27 Jun 2004
The Essential Calvin and Hobbes, first published in 1988, is chock full of early Calvin and Hobbes comic strips. No cartoonist, not even Charles Schultz, has captured the magical essence of childhood the way Bill Watterson did in this strip, and it should come as no surprise (although it did to Watterson) that Calvin and Hobbes quickly developed an incredibly loyal following. This strip went way beyond mere popularity. While I was in college, the campus newspaper decided to stop running Calvin and Hobbes (I think this was during one of Watterson's sabbaticals) - this resulted in nothing less than a furor on campus, as countless students immediately demanded the return of C&H. In a matter of days, Calvin and Hobbes were right back where they belonged. How does a comic strip featuring a mischievous six-year-old boy and his stuffed tiger attract a fiercely loyal following of adults? Most adults would love to be children again, to know the freedom and sense of wonder that somehow withers inside the human soul after the onset of puberty. Calvin and Hobbes vividly recreates the feelings and emotions of the very essence of childhood. It brings back memories of things we forgot far too long ago, and it thus reawakens the deepest parts of our ever-hardening souls. Reading this comic strip is the next best thing to being a child yourself. Calvin does everything you used to do: he takes time to stomp in mud puddles, he lets his imagination run wild to make thrilling adventures out of even the most mundane tasks, he ponders the same deep questions you are now, as an adult, afraid to ask, he goes for the gusto no matter what sort of risk is involved, he is in every way a perfect specimen of childhood. Who, as a child, didn't pretend to be a dinosaur, walk around with a hideous expression in hopes of your facing freezing that way, tease the girls (or boys) you claimed to hate, journey to distant worlds unseen by human eyes, etc.? Of course, Hobbes is just as important to the comic strip as Calvin. Hobbes is a tiger, Calvin's best and constant friend, a fellow partaker in the joys of childish innocence. To Calvin, Hobbes really is all that, and that is how we see him as well - until, that is, someone else comes into the frame, when he suddenly becomes nothing more than a stuffed animal. Watterson is a fantastic comic artist, and there is just something captivating about the way he draws Hobbes in his stuffed animal form. Everything about Watterson's art is fantastic, though, particularly the way it captures the emotions of its two principal characters. Sadly, we have only ten years of comic memories in the form of Calvin and Hobbes, as the inscrutable Bill Watterson retired (around the age of 37) in 1995 and quite obviously has no plans of returning to the public arena. Watterson is actually frighteningly private and seems to be living a life of unmatched solitude. I find this extraordinarily sad: here is a man who captured the essence of childhood so vividly in the form of Calvin and Hobbes, a world bursting with life and possibilities, yet now he seems to have withdrawn from life itself. We must be thankful we do have as much Calvin and Hobbes material as we do, and The Essential Calvin and Hobbes, with 255 pages of black and white daily strips and color Sunday strips, features much more than just a chunk of it in and of itself.
perfect Calvin and Hobbes book, 06 Nov 2003
This Calvin & Hobbes book is so funny as many of them are. Every time I read this it is so funny I laugh out loud. Many Calvin & Hobbes books are very funny but this one is so long it took me a long time to read. Most of the others I can read very quickly. I found this book so, so funny I bought loads more. I am trying to collect all of the Calvin & Hobbes books I can get because it is so good. This is a must buy!!! I suggest you get a smaller Calvin & Hobbes book & see if you like it first. If you do buy this!!!
Go for it!, 10 Apr 2006
This is a great Calvin and Hobbes selection, guaranteed to keep you laughing! This selection is published with the cartoons sized down to fit a lot in a small-sized book. If you have enjoyed any of the other Calvin and Hobbes books, then go for it! It is a great selection, and keeps up to the standard of the others. I keep on rereading this - I must have read it about 20 times and I am not sick yet!
A Must Buy!, 17 Nov 2000
Again, Bill Watterson amazes the world with his sense of humour...He not only has 1 Calvin in this book but manages to produce more Calvins, which are 10 times worse than the original Calvin...ahhhhh! I must have read this book more than 10 times and I still laugh out loud at some places. Although a few (very few) of the strips in this book are repeated in his other books, I would recommend it to any Calvin and Hobbes fan or to any first time reader...and if you are a first time reader...take insurance out on your stomach as you will have stomach cramps from all the laughter this book produces...
"...FURTHER BULLETINS AS EVENTS WARRENT!", 25 Oct 2003
Calvin and Hobbes are the funniest comic strips ever created. Although Watterson has retired and does not write them anymore, it's still great to have the collections. "Something Under the Bed is Drooling" is a collection of earlier Calvin and Hobbes stips. The old ones are the best, I think. Every page is guarenteed to make you laugh. The book is hillarious and it's fun to watch Calvin in action as he takes on his grumpy teacher, monsters, the deranged babysitter, the girl from next store, and of course, his aggravated parents. I can never get tired of Calvin and Hobbes. Anytime that I'm feeling down or if I'm just having a god-awful day, as soon as I pick up a Calvin and Hobbes book and start reading, I'm immediately feeling better and laughing aloud. I don't care how old you are, these are ALWAYS a joy to read (especially this particular collection). One of the funniest strips in the book is when Calvin is writing on a sheet of paper and Hobbes asks him what he is doing. Calvin tells him that he is writing his autobiography. Hobbes is confused and tells him that he's only six. Calvin simply answers, "I only have one sheet of paper." With great comics like Calvin and Hobbes, no one is too old to enjoy them. I say buy them all while you still can. They're great to read over and over again. "Something Under the Bed is Drooling" is a fine collection of great Calvin and Hobbes strips, and it continues to be one of my favourite collections.
Fantastic, 28 Apr 2001
I have been reading the calvin and hobbes' series ever since they first came out, and they just keep getting better and better. All of the books are amazing and everyone of them deserves 5 stars. Unfortunatly, Bill Watterson has stopped writing the books, which, in my eyes is a great shame. Buy this book, buy all the books. You will come back to them time and time again, and they are still funny. Even after the 50th time!!
The book is outstandingly funny and witty, 27 Aug 1999
A wonderful book.The storys are so funny your sides hurt.the fact that someone can draw three pictures and and make you laugh your head off is fantastic.Bill watterson is an amazingly funny person and this book proves it.A must have if you want a luagh.
Indispensible : My favorite, 09 Apr 2000
I started reading C&H from this one and now have the complete collection. I rank this one at the top, (alongside the tenth ann collection). Another reason is that it contains some of the poetry work by Watterson. I am a fan of his poetry too. Sounds similar to my own...
, 25 Mar 2000
This books, as with the others in the collection, are a must for those who refuse to grow up. The humor has sparkle and wit and the illustrations remind the reader that intelligent books do not necessarily have to be intense and an ordeal to read. I've never read a Calvin and Hobbes book before but after this one I have the whole collection. A great way to spend a lazy evening!
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Customer Reviews
Nostalgic, 07 Nov 2008
Bought it today, surprisingly alot bigger (not to mention heavier!) than i expected, but nevertheless, will be nostalgic going through every strip again having a laugh all the way! hope everyone else who decides to buys it will be enjoying it as much as i do!
Fantastic!, 17 Aug 2008
Brilliant. Just Brilliant. I've always loved the cartoons, but with this collection I got far more than I expected. As below, when I ordered this I was prepared for something slightly bigger than a DVD boxed set - what I got is a collection about A4 height (from there you can probably get an idea of scale from the picture supplied) and packed solid with cartoons. Apart from the obligatory Author's introduction, each page contains 4 regular strips or one large colour strip. The books are well finished and give the impression that, well treated, they will last a lifetime of reading. The paper is thick and durable, which adds to the weight of the collection but you won't be accidentaly tearing pages while flicking through. In fact, the whole thing seems to have been designed with longevity in mind.
I won't go on about how good the cartoons are - if you're looking at this item you probably already know that. If not, the fact so many people have forked out £40-60 for the privilege of owning it should be evidence enough. What I can say is that if you know you're looking for a collection of Calvin and Hobbes cartoons, the price of this collection is fully justified by the build quality. It would make an excellent gift or, as in my case, an excellent bit of self-indulgence, and will give years of smiles and laughter.
Well worth it's weight!, 24 Jun 2008
The other reviews here pretty much say it all... if you are a fan of Calvin and Hobbes, you are going to love this! And, if you are already a fan, you will undoubtedly own a few worn-out copies of the various collections. I already have most, if not all of the books;
what makes this special and worth having (..in addition!) is the beautiful presentation, in chronological order, of all the strips, with the large cover art added throughout.
It is big, it is heavy, but bearing in mind that it will probably stay put and be well looked after, I don't see any problem with this! It's obviously not intended to be lugged about as your sole copy, and it's nice to have a nice hardback volume to sit and read. If you want portable, take one of your paperbacks. If you want your favourite (and the best, most imaginative, philosophical, entertaining cartoon strip ever) in 3 well-made volumes, then you should really add this to your bookshelf. I just did, having read the previous reviews, and I love it already!
(I've read Calvin and Hobbes through many times, and they just don't date either.. Calvin's comments about the advertising industry, and his Dad's views about t.v, the media, traffic etc are as funny and relevant today as when they were written.)
Not much more to say... if you love Calvin and Hobbes, this collection really is well worth it's weight.
When cartoons grew up, 23 May 2008
I just got back from my post office here in Oslo Norway. The little woman who went back to get this package for me looked less than thrilled. This is HEAVY!
Well, anyhow, I just had my first look at this and it's stunning. Calvin and Hobbes deserve no less.
1987. It's been that many year | | |