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The Complete Peanuts #13
The Complete Peanuts, 1975-1976
Good grief, Charlie Brown, we’re halfway there! Two more years of classic Peanuts from the ’70s!
That’s right! With this volume, The Complete Peanuts reaches the halfway point of Charles M. Schulz’s astounding half-century run on the greatest comic strip of all time.
These years are especially fecund in terms of new canine characters, as Snoopy is joined by his wandering brother Spike (from Needles), his beloved sister Belle (from Kansas City), and... did you know he had a nephew? In other beagle news, Snoopy breaks his foot and spends six weeks in a cast, deals with his friend Woodstock’s case of the “the vapors,” and gets involved in a heated love triangle with Linus over the girl “Truffles.”
The Complete Peanuts 1975-1976 features several other long stories, including a rare “double track” sequence with two parallel narratives: Peppermint Patty and Snoopy travel to participate in the Powderpuff Derby, while Charlie Brown finally gets to meet his idol Joe Shlabotnik. And Peppermint Patty switches to a private school, but commits the mistake of allowing Snoopy to pick it for her; only after graduation does she realize something’s not quite right!
Plus: A burglary at Peppermint Patty’s house is exacerbated by waterbed problems... Marcie acquires an unwanted suitor... Charlie Brown and Peppermint Patty become desk partners... The talking school building collapses... Lots of tennis jokes... and gags starring Schroeder, Lucy, Franklin, Rerun, Sally, and that vicious cat next door. It’s another two years of Peanuts at its finest! Featuring an introduction by comedian Robert Smigel (Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, Saturday Night Live). 730 black-and-white comic strips
That’s right! With this volume, The Complete Peanuts reaches the halfway point of Charles M. Schulz’s astounding half-century run on the greatest comic strip of all time.
These years are especially fecund in terms of new canine characters, as Snoopy is joined by his wandering brother Spike (from Needles), his beloved sister Belle (from Kansas City), and... did you know he had a nephew? In other beagle news, Snoopy breaks his foot and spends six weeks in a cast, deals with his friend Woodstock’s case of the “the vapors,” and gets involved in a heated love triangle with Linus over the girl “Truffles.”
The Complete Peanuts 1975-1976 features several other long stories, including a rare “double track” sequence with two parallel narratives: Peppermint Patty and Snoopy travel to participate in the Powderpuff Derby, while Charlie Brown finally gets to meet his idol Joe Shlabotnik. And Peppermint Patty switches to a private school, but commits the mistake of allowing Snoopy to pick it for her; only after graduation does she realize something’s not quite right!
Plus: A burglary at Peppermint Patty’s house is exacerbated by waterbed problems... Marcie acquires an unwanted suitor... Charlie Brown and Peppermint Patty become desk partners... The talking school building collapses... Lots of tennis jokes... and gags starring Schroeder, Lucy, Franklin, Rerun, Sally, and that vicious cat next door. It’s another two years of Peanuts at its finest! Featuring an introduction by comedian Robert Smigel (Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, Saturday Night Live). 730 black-and-white comic strips
325 pages, Hardcover
First published April 20, 2010
27 people are currently reading
524 people want to read
About the author
Charles M. Schulz
3,023 books1,635 followersCharles Monroe Schulz was an American cartoonist, whose comic strip Peanuts proved one of the most popular and influential in the history of the medium, and is still widely reprinted on a daily basis.
Schulz's first regular cartoons, Li'l Folks, were published from 1947 to 1950 by the St. Paul Pioneer Press; he first used the name Charlie Brown for a character there, although he applied the name in four gags to three different boys and one buried in sand. The series also had a dog that looked much like Snoopy. In 1948, Schulz sold a cartoon to The Saturday Evening Post; the first of 17 single-panel cartoons by Schulz that would be published there. In 1948, Schulz tried to have Li'l Folks syndicated through the Newspaper Enterprise Association. Schulz would have been an independent contractor for the syndicate, unheard of in the 1940s, but the deal fell through. Li'l Folks was dropped from the Pioneer Press in January, 1950.
Later that year, Schulz approached the United Feature Syndicate with his best strips from Li'l Folks, and Peanuts made its first appearance on October 2, 1950. The strip became one of the most popular comic strips of all time. He also had a short-lived sports-oriented comic strip called It's Only a Game (1957–1959), but he abandoned it due to the demands of the successful Peanuts. From 1956 to 1965 he contributed a single-panel strip ("Young Pillars") featuring teenagers to Youth, a publication associated with the Church of God.
Peanuts ran for nearly 50 years, almost without interruption; during the life of the strip, Schulz took only one vacation, a five-week break in late 1997. At its peak, Peanuts appeared in more than 2,600 newspapers in 75 countries. Schulz stated that his routine every morning consisted of eating a jelly donut and sitting down to write the day's strip. After coming up with an idea (which he said could take anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours), he began drawing it, which took about an hour for dailies and three hours for Sunday strips. He stubbornly refused to hire an inker or letterer, saying that "it would be equivalent to a golfer hiring a man to make his putts for him." In November 1999 Schulz suffered a stroke, and later it was discovered that he had colon cancer that had metastasized. Because of the chemotherapy and the fact he could not read or see clearly, he announced his retirement on December 14, 1999.
Schulz often touched on religious themes in his work, including the classic television cartoon, A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965), which features the character Linus van Pelt quoting the King James Version of the Bible Luke 2:8-14 to explain "what Christmas is all about." In personal interviews Schulz mentioned that Linus represented his spiritual side. Schulz, reared in the Lutheran faith, had been active in the Church of God as a young adult and then later taught Sunday school at a United Methodist Church. In the 1960s, Robert L. Short interpreted certain themes and conversations in Peanuts as being consistent with parts of Christian theology, and used them as illustrations during his lectures about the gospel, as he explained in his bestselling paperback book, The Gospel According to Peanuts, the first of several books he wrote on religion and Peanuts, and other popular culture items. From the late 1980s, however, Schulz described himself in interviews as a "secular humanist": “I do not go to church anymore... I guess you might say I've come around to secular humanism, an obligation I believe all humans have to others and the world we live in.”
Schulz's first regular cartoons, Li'l Folks, were published from 1947 to 1950 by the St. Paul Pioneer Press; he first used the name Charlie Brown for a character there, although he applied the name in four gags to three different boys and one buried in sand. The series also had a dog that looked much like Snoopy. In 1948, Schulz sold a cartoon to The Saturday Evening Post; the first of 17 single-panel cartoons by Schulz that would be published there. In 1948, Schulz tried to have Li'l Folks syndicated through the Newspaper Enterprise Association. Schulz would have been an independent contractor for the syndicate, unheard of in the 1940s, but the deal fell through. Li'l Folks was dropped from the Pioneer Press in January, 1950.
Later that year, Schulz approached the United Feature Syndicate with his best strips from Li'l Folks, and Peanuts made its first appearance on October 2, 1950. The strip became one of the most popular comic strips of all time. He also had a short-lived sports-oriented comic strip called It's Only a Game (1957–1959), but he abandoned it due to the demands of the successful Peanuts. From 1956 to 1965 he contributed a single-panel strip ("Young Pillars") featuring teenagers to Youth, a publication associated with the Church of God.
Peanuts ran for nearly 50 years, almost without interruption; during the life of the strip, Schulz took only one vacation, a five-week break in late 1997. At its peak, Peanuts appeared in more than 2,600 newspapers in 75 countries. Schulz stated that his routine every morning consisted of eating a jelly donut and sitting down to write the day's strip. After coming up with an idea (which he said could take anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours), he began drawing it, which took about an hour for dailies and three hours for Sunday strips. He stubbornly refused to hire an inker or letterer, saying that "it would be equivalent to a golfer hiring a man to make his putts for him." In November 1999 Schulz suffered a stroke, and later it was discovered that he had colon cancer that had metastasized. Because of the chemotherapy and the fact he could not read or see clearly, he announced his retirement on December 14, 1999.
Schulz often touched on religious themes in his work, including the classic television cartoon, A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965), which features the character Linus van Pelt quoting the King James Version of the Bible Luke 2:8-14 to explain "what Christmas is all about." In personal interviews Schulz mentioned that Linus represented his spiritual side. Schulz, reared in the Lutheran faith, had been active in the Church of God as a young adult and then later taught Sunday school at a United Methodist Church. In the 1960s, Robert L. Short interpreted certain themes and conversations in Peanuts as being consistent with parts of Christian theology, and used them as illustrations during his lectures about the gospel, as he explained in his bestselling paperback book, The Gospel According to Peanuts, the first of several books he wrote on religion and Peanuts, and other popular culture items. From the late 1980s, however, Schulz described himself in interviews as a "secular humanist": “I do not go to church anymore... I guess you might say I've come around to secular humanism, an obligation I believe all humans have to others and the world we live in.”
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 63 reviews
June 23, 2023
Rip off! Frieda is on the cover but only shows up for a couple strips in November 1976! Actually, this is one of the better ones. Lots of Peppermint Patty, lots of Marcie, and Sally is in fine form.
I have now read half of Charles Schultz' Peanuts output. 13 volumes down, 13 to go.
I have now read half of Charles Schultz' Peanuts output. 13 volumes down, 13 to go.
June 12, 2023
Hardcover -> Third Printing = September 2015
Just how well do you know Snoopy?
Casual and from->hindsight fans may have an entirely wrong impression of the actual character that puts that aesthetically cute figure in action. Some "Peanuts" ex-adherents' memories may have skimmed certain notions aside in the many years since or would have ingested it all much differently if they were not yet adults with a bit of maturity. I'll set up what I'm getting at, rant a bit, then leave a touch of light at the end of the "tunnel" that I'm digging here within the trappings of the over-arching narrative:
Ostensibly, Snoopy is the character that fits the endearing and heartwarming mold- he has gained a high spot in the "international adorability charts" and even wafts a feeling of love over many upon sight. In Francophonia, they have published shockingly more albums of just Snoopy, then so many books that were not centered around him have his name leading- the translation of this very series is titled "Snoopy & les Peanuts"!
With all of that warm and fuzzy perception, and whatever other accolades he engenders, kept in mind- what percent of his enthusiasts have read entire years straight through in this collected fashion? "Best of" type collections or other non-archival sorts are to be completely disregarded. What I'm getting at applies to 21 of 27 years from the beginning to the end of this book (all besides 59-60, 63-64, 67-68 but I'm sure they will also apply) which I have read over the past four months.
After reading no more than eight years in that period, I began to hate Snoopy. Then, after it's gradual acceleration, I had reached the point of saying it aloud -even barking out my specific detestations- by time I reached this edition! Exempting his actions with Woodstock, who he adores and extends humanity towards, he's a terrible person (since he thinks and acts as one) and an even worse dog.
He's massively narcissistic, which I'm totally fine with and find funny when he's alone, in such an extreme way that when it manifests within his thoughts and actions towards others, he becomes an abject scumbag with brutal heartlessness who only ever caring for his own interests- no matter what goals of others that he impedes/bungles or who gets emotionally hurt or even devastated! A quick kiss here and there to cheer someone up hardly counts against that because it's always when he just happens to be there and wants to be the one who gets to be the exclamation of the situation- then mostly when Schulz needs a "punchline" to wrap the scene.
I could go on with examples of what a detestable "person" he is -since he plays the human role inside a dog shell- to every character surrounding in so many different ways for at least an hour at this point. Selfishness and his guile to achieve it mesh with being knowingly inconsiderate so regularly that he has become a monster to my sensibilities but I must shift to how he thinks and acts in the "dog" role to REALLY sum up my disgust:
As a pet, he's as ungrateful as it gets for everything that he is given, from meals and treats to warmth and adoration, the same as he is willfully oblivious the security and comfort of his own house and the healthcare he receives.
->He doesn't care enough about his owner to remember his name and isn't even nice enough to hide it since he types "to the round-headed kid" when he writes to Charlie- who he thinks of as his waiter. Sure, tastes of that here and there are definitely funny, but fail to be so upon accumulation without any niceties that would make them zing instead of sting.
->He gets permission for nothing, even leaving the country (he thinks), and doesn't care even the slightest about what Charlie thinks about anything since, in general, he disobeys essentially as a rule. Then, he's so often brutally cruel- especially when he is always choosing to "take the side" of a different character against his caretaker.
Thus, Snoopy has managed to climb to the top tier of my CICDICs "Characters I Cravenly Despise In Context" which measures how strongly I hate a character within the surrounding circumstances factoring in their past along with what has and/or is happening to them.
Then at the end of 1976, all of the sudden, drastically out of character, after the ultimate in cowardice and avoidance -sprinting away from helping Patty with a problem that he was even the entire cause of "on two levels"- he does something heroic! Where many everyday fans feeling like I was and writing him about it? Did he feel obliged to add a touch of morality to the menace? It seemed forced to me...
Just how well do you know Snoopy?
Casual and from->hindsight fans may have an entirely wrong impression of the actual character that puts that aesthetically cute figure in action. Some "Peanuts" ex-adherents' memories may have skimmed certain notions aside in the many years since or would have ingested it all much differently if they were not yet adults with a bit of maturity. I'll set up what I'm getting at, rant a bit, then leave a touch of light at the end of the "tunnel" that I'm digging here within the trappings of the over-arching narrative:
Ostensibly, Snoopy is the character that fits the endearing and heartwarming mold- he has gained a high spot in the "international adorability charts" and even wafts a feeling of love over many upon sight. In Francophonia, they have published shockingly more albums of just Snoopy, then so many books that were not centered around him have his name leading- the translation of this very series is titled "Snoopy & les Peanuts"!
With all of that warm and fuzzy perception, and whatever other accolades he engenders, kept in mind- what percent of his enthusiasts have read entire years straight through in this collected fashion? "Best of" type collections or other non-archival sorts are to be completely disregarded. What I'm getting at applies to 21 of 27 years from the beginning to the end of this book (all besides 59-60, 63-64, 67-68 but I'm sure they will also apply) which I have read over the past four months.
After reading no more than eight years in that period, I began to hate Snoopy. Then, after it's gradual acceleration, I had reached the point of saying it aloud -even barking out my specific detestations- by time I reached this edition! Exempting his actions with Woodstock, who he adores and extends humanity towards, he's a terrible person (since he thinks and acts as one) and an even worse dog.
He's massively narcissistic, which I'm totally fine with and find funny when he's alone, in such an extreme way that when it manifests within his thoughts and actions towards others, he becomes an abject scumbag with brutal heartlessness who only ever caring for his own interests- no matter what goals of others that he impedes/bungles or who gets emotionally hurt or even devastated! A quick kiss here and there to cheer someone up hardly counts against that because it's always when he just happens to be there and wants to be the one who gets to be the exclamation of the situation- then mostly when Schulz needs a "punchline" to wrap the scene.
I could go on with examples of what a detestable "person" he is -since he plays the human role inside a dog shell- to every character surrounding in so many different ways for at least an hour at this point. Selfishness and his guile to achieve it mesh with being knowingly inconsiderate so regularly that he has become a monster to my sensibilities but I must shift to how he thinks and acts in the "dog" role to REALLY sum up my disgust:
As a pet, he's as ungrateful as it gets for everything that he is given, from meals and treats to warmth and adoration, the same as he is willfully oblivious the security and comfort of his own house and the healthcare he receives.
->He doesn't care enough about his owner to remember his name and isn't even nice enough to hide it since he types "to the round-headed kid" when he writes to Charlie- who he thinks of as his waiter. Sure, tastes of that here and there are definitely funny, but fail to be so upon accumulation without any niceties that would make them zing instead of sting.
->He gets permission for nothing, even leaving the country (he thinks), and doesn't care even the slightest about what Charlie thinks about anything since, in general, he disobeys essentially as a rule. Then, he's so often brutally cruel- especially when he is always choosing to "take the side" of a different character against his caretaker.
Thus, Snoopy has managed to climb to the top tier of my CICDICs "Characters I Cravenly Despise In Context" which measures how strongly I hate a character within the surrounding circumstances factoring in their past along with what has and/or is happening to them.
Then at the end of 1976, all of the sudden, drastically out of character, after the ultimate in cowardice and avoidance -sprinting away from helping Patty with a problem that he was even the entire cause of "on two levels"- he does something heroic! Where many everyday fans feeling like I was and writing him about it? Did he feel obliged to add a touch of morality to the menace? It seemed forced to me...
April 28, 2010
This volume marks the half way point in this magnificent project by Fantagraphics Books and, after 25 years of working his strip, Schulz is still, if not at the very top of his game, near enough to the top. It’s a very enjoyable anthology with fresh spins on old chestnuts (Charlie Brown’s poor baseball team, Sally and Peppermint Patty’s school woes, Lucy unrequited love for Schroeder, etc.), with new characters and twists (Snoopy and Linus compete for the affections of young lady nicknamed Truffles; the local public school talks—though only Sally can hear—and has a nervous breakdown, collapsing in a heap of rubble; Sally goes to obedience school on Snoopy’s recommendation when public school fails her; Marcie has a boy who has a crush on her, though she thinks his endearments are all sarcasm).
Some samples: Sally responds to a school assignment, writing, “What Do We Learn from History? We don’t learn anything from History.” She pauses and continues to write, “I don’t even learn anything from Math.” Rerun rides on the back of his mother’s bike, flying into traffic, he narrates: “Down the driveway. Into the street. Over Hill! Over Dale! Poor Dale.” Linus returns Snoopy’s manuscript. “Your novel starts too slowly. You need a more powerful beginning,” he advises Snoopy. After pondering the advice, Snoopy types, “Call me Ishmael.” (This is the only strip from this collection that I clearly remembered from reading it decades ago.) Linus asks Charlie Brown, “What would you say your philosophy is?” Charlie Brown replies, “The secret of happiness is having three things to look forward to and nothing to regret.” He looks proudly at Linus, who is disappointed, “There’s a difference between philosophy and a bumper sticker.” And perhaps my favorite strip in the book: Charlie Brown to Snoopy: “I hear you’re writing a book on theology. I hope you have a good title.” Snoopy: “I have the perfect title. ‘Has It Ever Occurred to You That You Might Be Wrong.’”
Some samples: Sally responds to a school assignment, writing, “What Do We Learn from History? We don’t learn anything from History.” She pauses and continues to write, “I don’t even learn anything from Math.” Rerun rides on the back of his mother’s bike, flying into traffic, he narrates: “Down the driveway. Into the street. Over Hill! Over Dale! Poor Dale.” Linus returns Snoopy’s manuscript. “Your novel starts too slowly. You need a more powerful beginning,” he advises Snoopy. After pondering the advice, Snoopy types, “Call me Ishmael.” (This is the only strip from this collection that I clearly remembered from reading it decades ago.) Linus asks Charlie Brown, “What would you say your philosophy is?” Charlie Brown replies, “The secret of happiness is having three things to look forward to and nothing to regret.” He looks proudly at Linus, who is disappointed, “There’s a difference between philosophy and a bumper sticker.” And perhaps my favorite strip in the book: Charlie Brown to Snoopy: “I hear you’re writing a book on theology. I hope you have a good title.” Snoopy: “I have the perfect title. ‘Has It Ever Occurred to You That You Might Be Wrong.’”
July 24, 2020
I'm a sucker for Snoopy and the rest of the gang, they make me very happy so this book is just what I needed. Now I just need to collect the rest of the series!
July 26, 2021
Never a dull moment in this volume. Highlights include Charlie Brown having to share a desk with Peppermint Patty (due to his school no longer wanting to be a school). Snoopy getting a visit from brother Spike. Snoopy going to play tennis at Wimbledon, which he thinks is in Kansas City, and meeting his sister Belle and her son there. Snoopy having a stookie (ask your Scottish relatives/friends what that is) for six weeks. All this and more. I am now halfway through the set and thoroughly loving it.
February 7, 2023
Back in 1950, Charles M Schulz created one of the world's most iconic comic strips, Peanuts! Funny, sad, philosophical and poignant. The ultimate in 'light reading'.
May 26, 2019
Sally talks to the school -- the school later falls down -- Charlie Brown has to share a desk with Peppermint Patty with complications. Spike appears and Lucy feeds him up -- later he invites Snoopy to Thanksgiving with the coyotes and misadventures ensue. Snoopy and Linus meet Truffles at her grandfather's farm, but it goes better for Snoopy. Baseball and Lucy chasing Schroeder. Snoopy and Woodstock worry about the tale of the Three Little Pigs. Charlie Brown tries to get hired for odd jobs. Snoopy breaks his leg. Marcie hates sports but wants a baseball cap.
July 12, 2017
Good, solid Peanuts work.
Snoopy's brother Spike shows up to visit. He heads out to Wimbledon, and ends up visiting his sister Belle in Kansas City instead. The school has a breakdown and collapses. Peppermint Patty leaves public school for a private school recommended by her attorney. She and Snoopy get into a fight with the cat next door (its name is "World War II" -- I never knew that!). Charlie Brown attempts to get odd jobs to do around the neighborhood, and when he fails, he goes off to summer camp. It rains heavily during a baseball game, and Charlie Brown is washed out to sea on his pitcher's mound.
Snoopy's brother Spike shows up to visit. He heads out to Wimbledon, and ends up visiting his sister Belle in Kansas City instead. The school has a breakdown and collapses. Peppermint Patty leaves public school for a private school recommended by her attorney. She and Snoopy get into a fight with the cat next door (its name is "World War II" -- I never knew that!). Charlie Brown attempts to get odd jobs to do around the neighborhood, and when he fails, he goes off to summer camp. It rains heavily during a baseball game, and Charlie Brown is washed out to sea on his pitcher's mound.
August 4, 2021
Peppermint Patty: "Do you know any good rules for living, Chuck?"
Charlie Brown: "Keep the ball low... Don't leave your crayons in the sun, use dental floss every day, give four weeks notice when ordering a change of address and don't spill the shoe polish! Always knock before entering, don't let the ants get in the sugar, never volunteer to be program chairman, always get your first serve in... And feed your dog whenever he's hungry!"
Peppermint Patty: "Will those rules give me a better life, Chuck?"
Charlie Brown: "A better life and a fat dog!"
Charlie Brown: "Keep the ball low... Don't leave your crayons in the sun, use dental floss every day, give four weeks notice when ordering a change of address and don't spill the shoe polish! Always knock before entering, don't let the ants get in the sugar, never volunteer to be program chairman, always get your first serve in... And feed your dog whenever he's hungry!"
Peppermint Patty: "Will those rules give me a better life, Chuck?"
Charlie Brown: "A better life and a fat dog!"
July 4, 2024
A really fun set of Peanuts with lots of Peppermint Patty & Snoopy - including their epic fight with the Cat Next Door.
Some very proto-Calvin & Hobbes sequences as well as the joy of watching Snoopy try to get to his tennis destiny at Wimbledon. ( which caused me at first read as a Wimbledon resident to look up how far it was from Kansas City and remain more perplexed after so doing!)
If you’re a depressed school building approach with care otherwise - enjoy!!
Some very proto-Calvin & Hobbes sequences as well as the joy of watching Snoopy try to get to his tennis destiny at Wimbledon. ( which caused me at first read as a Wimbledon resident to look up how far it was from Kansas City and remain more perplexed after so doing!)
If you’re a depressed school building approach with care otherwise - enjoy!!
May 30, 2023
Another great volume in this series. I love the art but mostly I love the heart in these cartoons. I get something new from them each time I read them as I live and learn.
This volume has Snoopy leading his troop of little Woodstock birds on scout hikes - brilliant- and his fights with the cat next door get worse, even involving Peppermint Patty at one stage.
This volume has Snoopy leading his troop of little Woodstock birds on scout hikes - brilliant- and his fights with the cat next door get worse, even involving Peppermint Patty at one stage.
July 26, 2021
Got a rare panel from Lucy at school, I enjoyed that.
January 1, 2021
The long storyline with Peppermint Patty going to obedience school is one long 😂.
October 18, 2020
An ever-so-slightly flat couple of years. Schulz remains head-and-shoulders above the competition but takes a few missteps in his search for new storylines and characters. Though not entirely efficacious, the attempted reinvigoration demonstrates an intent to pursue rather than rest upon laurels.
October 15, 2025
A complete collection of two years of the comics.
March 6, 2012
At the moment I'm playing a little catch-up with the Complete Peanuts series. It looks like I started going off the rails in late 2009 (as revealed by my Goodreads history), a little earlier than I thought. As the books in this series are released, two per year for about 24 years, I've been reading them in order. The good news is it doesn't seem as daunting that way; the bad news is I now have a fuzzy memory of the earlier volumes.
In this one, Peanuts definitely feels like the strip that everyone knows (opposed to earlier volumes where readers witness the birth/evolution of Peanuts norms). The strip also seems more genuinely funny than it has in the past. Two of Snoopy's family members, Spike and Belle (and her gangly teenage son) are introduced in this volume; as is "Truffles," a forgotten character over whom Linus and Snoopy compete for affection.
My favorite storyline in this volume stars Peppermint Patty. When she's not doing well in class, she starts shopping around for a private school. Snoopy offers her a brochure for an option that's just $25 for an eight week course, and she can't resist the value. She likes it—the school is so liberal, all the other students even get to bring their dogs to class. Peppermint Patty earns her diploma astoundingly fast, and it isn't until she and her lawyer (Snoopy) are meeting with her former principal that she discovers "Ace Obedience School" is for DOGS! It may not sound funny, but it was probably the first time a multi-strip storyline kept my mind interested and amused throughout.
The next volume is already on hold for me at my local library, so hopefully I'll be caught up before May, when the latest installment is issued!
In this one, Peanuts definitely feels like the strip that everyone knows (opposed to earlier volumes where readers witness the birth/evolution of Peanuts norms). The strip also seems more genuinely funny than it has in the past. Two of Snoopy's family members, Spike and Belle (and her gangly teenage son) are introduced in this volume; as is "Truffles," a forgotten character over whom Linus and Snoopy compete for affection.
My favorite storyline in this volume stars Peppermint Patty. When she's not doing well in class, she starts shopping around for a private school. Snoopy offers her a brochure for an option that's just $25 for an eight week course, and she can't resist the value. She likes it—the school is so liberal, all the other students even get to bring their dogs to class. Peppermint Patty earns her diploma astoundingly fast, and it isn't until she and her lawyer (Snoopy) are meeting with her former principal that she discovers "Ace Obedience School" is for DOGS! It may not sound funny, but it was probably the first time a multi-strip storyline kept my mind interested and amused throughout.
The next volume is already on hold for me at my local library, so hopefully I'll be caught up before May, when the latest installment is issued!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 13, 2013
Made it through another great Peanuts collection, but I feel like I'm farther from the end of this project than ever before - mainly because I found out that Fantagraphics is nowhere near finishing the process of getting all of them published. Stupid me, I thought that what was out now was the complete run - the last one out (so far) covers the period 85 through 86, which sounded like a pretty good run to me, considering he started in 1950. I now learn that he actually kept cranking the strip out until the late 90s - I thought they were just recycling them by then. Anyway, at the rate they're bringing out the new volumes, I could be dead by the time they finish. Or blind. Or have shifted my interest to another strip - so who knows if I'll actually get around to reading them all? I feel like I'd started a series I thought was complete, and then found out the author is actually planning nine more volumes - fans of fantasy series know just what I mean.
None of this should distract me from the fact that this was a particularly good period for the strip, Schulz's sense of humor is as sharp as ever. Peppermint Patty continues as a major player, along with Marcie who has become her sidekick/foil - not unlike Woodstock with Snoopy, who also gets lots of space during this period.
And Pigpen actually made a reappearance! Granted, for only one strip, a fairly inconsequential one with the usual stock joke about the cloud of dust that always accompanies him, but it's still more of a showing than he'd made for approximately the preceding decade. Schulz must have been feeling particularly nostalgic that day.
None of this should distract me from the fact that this was a particularly good period for the strip, Schulz's sense of humor is as sharp as ever. Peppermint Patty continues as a major player, along with Marcie who has become her sidekick/foil - not unlike Woodstock with Snoopy, who also gets lots of space during this period.
And Pigpen actually made a reappearance! Granted, for only one strip, a fairly inconsequential one with the usual stock joke about the cloud of dust that always accompanies him, but it's still more of a showing than he'd made for approximately the preceding decade. Schulz must have been feeling particularly nostalgic that day.
December 17, 2013
The animator from SNL Robert Smigel does the introduction to this volume.
Snoopy is the focal point of so many stories here,but I kind of like the story where he and Linus fall in love with the same girl. The contest kind of decided when Linus gets a card for the Christmas Holiday and Snoopy gets a Silver feeding dish. The cat next door get even more vicious when he battles both Snoopy and Peppermint Patty get into a fight that lasts most of a week with him. At the end Patty asks Snoopy if they won or lost, to which he replies "yes". Many of Snoopy's family appears, Spike at Thankgiving, Belle with his nephew. Snoopy also has Peppermint Patty going to a dog training school. She thinks she's going to private school.
Still in its hay day the strips are strong. I like to see more with the other characters then is going on during this time period, but Snoopy is in the public eye and for these years its his strip.
Snoopy is the focal point of so many stories here,but I kind of like the story where he and Linus fall in love with the same girl. The contest kind of decided when Linus gets a card for the Christmas Holiday and Snoopy gets a Silver feeding dish. The cat next door get even more vicious when he battles both Snoopy and Peppermint Patty get into a fight that lasts most of a week with him. At the end Patty asks Snoopy if they won or lost, to which he replies "yes". Many of Snoopy's family appears, Spike at Thankgiving, Belle with his nephew. Snoopy also has Peppermint Patty going to a dog training school. She thinks she's going to private school.
Still in its hay day the strips are strong. I like to see more with the other characters then is going on during this time period, but Snoopy is in the public eye and for these years its his strip.
March 28, 2016
I've been following these Fantagraphics Complete Peanuts books since the first one came out in 2005. This particular volume is full of the kind of gentle, sometimes harsh and unexpectedly profound humor we've come to expect from Schulz. Despite the presence of Frieda and her "naturally curly hair" on the cover, most of the strips focus on Charlie Brown (of course), and the duos of Snoopy/Woodstock and Peppermint Patty/Marcie. There's a bit of a lull in the creativity on this volume, since it repeats a lot of gags introduced in the 1973-74 volume. Schulz adds some novelty with the introduction of Snoopy's relatives Spike and Belle, although for many (myself included) they signal the beginning of his reliance on the bland and cutesy. Since we're starting to enter the period when I was enthralled by the Peanuts gang as a kid, however, it's likely I'll continue checking these out. As usual, Fantagraphics does a fantastic job with the packaging, indexing and introductions.
February 1, 2023
The 1970s appears to be the sweet spot for the Peanuts comic strip. This volume is the midpoint of the strip's 50 year reign, and it has Schulz at the peak of his game. The zaniness is really cranked up here, and the storylines keep getting longer and more involved. Peppermint Patty continues to shine, providing most of the highlights this time around.
To give an idea of the antics Patty gets up to in this volume, here's some of the plots starring Patty.
Peppermint Patty graduates from dog obedience school without ever realizing she was the only human in the class.
Peppermint Patty uses Snoopy's doghouse to fly in an imaginary derby.
Peppermint Patty hires Snoopy as a guard dog while her dad is out of town, only to get trapped on a water bed while her house is robbed.
Marcie gets upset with a boy at camp calling her "Lambcake."
It's not all Peppermint Patty, of course. Snoopy gets plenty of screen time, and he makes better use of than usual.
Snoopy goes on an extended trip to play in Wimbledon.
There's a love triangle between Snoopy, Linus, and a girl named Truffles that starts because Linus takes Snoopy to sniff out actual truffles.
Snoopy has a broken foot for several weeks.
Snoopy gets new relatives. We meet his brother, Spike, who Lucy immediately fattens up and sends back to Needles. We also meet Snoopy's sisters, Belle, and her son, Snoopy's nephew. This meeting with Belle is extremely short and doesn't go anywhere, though.
Good old Charlie Brown gets to see his baseball idol, Joe Shlabotnik, coach a local team. Charlie Brown catches a foul ball and manages to get it signed by Joe. He also goes door to door attempting to do chores for his neighbors. There are a few endearing scenes of Charlie Brown and Peppermint Patty discussing life under a tree, which always get me.
Even the inanimate objects get into the action. The sentient school commits suicide. The pitching mound wants to take a vacation to Hawaii.
Overall, a great collection of classic Peanuts strips.
To give an idea of the antics Patty gets up to in this volume, here's some of the plots starring Patty.
Peppermint Patty graduates from dog obedience school without ever realizing she was the only human in the class.
Peppermint Patty uses Snoopy's doghouse to fly in an imaginary derby.
Peppermint Patty hires Snoopy as a guard dog while her dad is out of town, only to get trapped on a water bed while her house is robbed.
Marcie gets upset with a boy at camp calling her "Lambcake."
It's not all Peppermint Patty, of course. Snoopy gets plenty of screen time, and he makes better use of than usual.
Snoopy goes on an extended trip to play in Wimbledon.
There's a love triangle between Snoopy, Linus, and a girl named Truffles that starts because Linus takes Snoopy to sniff out actual truffles.
Snoopy has a broken foot for several weeks.
Snoopy gets new relatives. We meet his brother, Spike, who Lucy immediately fattens up and sends back to Needles. We also meet Snoopy's sisters, Belle, and her son, Snoopy's nephew. This meeting with Belle is extremely short and doesn't go anywhere, though.
Good old Charlie Brown gets to see his baseball idol, Joe Shlabotnik, coach a local team. Charlie Brown catches a foul ball and manages to get it signed by Joe. He also goes door to door attempting to do chores for his neighbors. There are a few endearing scenes of Charlie Brown and Peppermint Patty discussing life under a tree, which always get me.
Even the inanimate objects get into the action. The sentient school commits suicide. The pitching mound wants to take a vacation to Hawaii.
Overall, a great collection of classic Peanuts strips.
August 31, 2020
As the strip progresses, Snoopy becomes more and more surreal, not really a dog (in the earliest strips, Snoopy was definitely very "doggy"), yet not quite a human either.
All my favorite strips series seem to be of Peppermint Patty who really comes into her own. I've always loved Marcy. Peppermint Patty ending up transferring schools and ending up in a dog obedience school is a riot; her flying the Powder Puff Derby was also cute. I can remember my brother and I laughing over the strips on the waterbed (which to young kids in the 1970s were the strangest contraptions!; and the scenes with Snoopy, Marcy and Peppermint Patty stuck on the waterbed matched your feelings of these strange sloshiness of those old waterbeds; as usual, Charles Schulz understood).
This: "Sighs can start arguments, too, Chuck!"
and this: "Don't hassle me with your sighs, Chuck!"
All my favorite strips series seem to be of Peppermint Patty who really comes into her own. I've always loved Marcy. Peppermint Patty ending up transferring schools and ending up in a dog obedience school is a riot; her flying the Powder Puff Derby was also cute. I can remember my brother and I laughing over the strips on the waterbed (which to young kids in the 1970s were the strangest contraptions!; and the scenes with Snoopy, Marcy and Peppermint Patty stuck on the waterbed matched your feelings of these strange sloshiness of those old waterbeds; as usual, Charles Schulz understood).
This: "Sighs can start arguments, too, Chuck!"
and this: "Don't hassle me with your sighs, Chuck!"
September 9, 2023
As the 1970s progressed Schulz seemed to enter a new quality standard, less compelling than his best work from the late 1950s to early 1960s, but better and more consistent than the uncertain than his work from the late sixties-early seventies. There was even a panel that made me laugh out loud (May 24, 1976). 1975-1976 introduces some new characters: the minor players Truffles (March 31, 1975) and Floyd (July 1976), and Snoopy's relatives Spike (August 1975) and Belle (June 1976). Nevertheless, Schulz is at his best when concentrating on his core cast of Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus, Lucy, Sally and Peppermint Patty. There are some great continuities and Schulz's artwork remains outstanding throughout. There's the occasional tennis gag, but these remain rare, as are the surrealist gags involving a thinking school building, which I consider as Schulz's worst.
June 24, 2025
I couldn’t stop laughing when I came across the unexpected love triangle between Snoopy, Linus, and Truffles! 😂
It was absolutely hilarious. I had never realized before that Snoopy and Linus were technically love rivals until I stumbled upon the unexpected love triangle between Snoopy, Linus, and Truffles.
Yes, you read that right: Snoopy and Linus were romantic rivals fighting over the same girl. And somehow, it works.
I highly recommend getting this hardcover edition. Not only does it include the complete collection, but the production quality is noticeably better—the layout is clean and thoughtfully designed, and the vibrant colours on the cover are stunning. You can really tell that care was put into making this a collector-worthy version. It’s the kind of book that doesn’t just sit on your shelf—it belongs there.✨✨✨✨✨
It was absolutely hilarious. I had never realized before that Snoopy and Linus were technically love rivals until I stumbled upon the unexpected love triangle between Snoopy, Linus, and Truffles.
Yes, you read that right: Snoopy and Linus were romantic rivals fighting over the same girl. And somehow, it works.
I highly recommend getting this hardcover edition. Not only does it include the complete collection, but the production quality is noticeably better—the layout is clean and thoughtfully designed, and the vibrant colours on the cover are stunning. You can really tell that care was put into making this a collector-worthy version. It’s the kind of book that doesn’t just sit on your shelf—it belongs there.✨✨✨✨✨
May 11, 2022
In this one are my favourite scenes from the fights between Snoopy, Woodstock and World War II (the cat next door). Sally and the school crack me up, and the unrequited love of Lucy for Schroeder hits almost too close to home. Anyways, always excellent 👍🏻
May 4, 2024
These are the years I first started reading Peanuts in the newspaper as a kid, so I'm biased when I say these strips are magical. By this time the strip has moved away from the philosophical 1960's and moved on to the more fanciful 1970's. Snoopy has taken center stage, but there are still several of Schulz's multi-week "sagas," often centered on other characters. Still prime Schulz!
March 5, 2019
You simply can’t go wrong with Peanuts. Charles Schulz was a genius.
November 18, 2023
A couple of glorious Great Pumpkin skits.
The tone is definitely changing slightly and some of the strips are much more wordy. Beethovens birthday makes a welcome return.
The tone is definitely changing slightly and some of the strips are much more wordy. Beethovens birthday makes a welcome return.
September 29, 2024
Snoopy trapped on the water bed 👍👍
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