Customer Reviews
Wonderful book, wonderful series! - By: J. C. Walker, 12 Aug 2008 
This is a wonderful & beautifully presented series. I highly recommend it. Although some of Peanuts comedy has dated, the vast majority is still as sweet & charming as ever. If you love Calvin & Hobbes, this where it all began. A joyous collection.
The third dose of complete Peanuts... - By: Mr. Dk Hamm, 11 May 2005 
This is the third bookin an amazing series that will eventually publish every single Peanuts strip, & it is basically more of what appearedin the second book. The strip at that time was mainly about a group of children going through life. In a way, it was always like that, but somehow the early years are much more down to earth.
There is, however, one big breakthroughin this volume: Snoopy begins to use his imagination. But don't expect battles with the Red Baron, or Joe someone! At this stage he was only imitating animals. But it was still a start that produces many laughs along the way.
As for the rest of the group: It was mainly Charlie Brown Shroader, Lucy, Linus, 'Pig Pen', Violet, & Patty - the first one - being children. Shermy isin it too, but he was being used much less already. And the ephemeral Charlotte Bruan, introduced at the end of 1954, gets a few more stripsin January 1955. Linus, on the other hand, gets a big character development. He leaves his baby status earlyin 1955 & is allowed to show a certain superiority over the others. He does, however, already rely on the security blanket,(which Lucy's attitude towards slowly changes throughout the volume,) & he has trouble understanding Halloween. His "Just wait till next year!" line works for me not because it is funny then, but because we know what he will be doingin future Halloweens!
As I said before, this book is nothing exceptional. And pernaps my mark of 4 out of 5 is a little biased. It is all good, but I know that future volumes will be better! And nothing major really happens here apart from some character development, & it is the later strips that I have come to love.
If you want to get the complete collection, (which I certainly hope you do,) then this book is a must-buy. If, however, you do not have any of the other booksin the series, then you may want to buy them first.
