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 The Calvin and Hobbes Tenth Anniversary Book :: 0836204387
Description
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| Now that Bill Watterson has retired from drawing syndicated cartoons, the only way to get our Calvin and Hobbes fixes is through his book collections. The 10th Anniversary Book is particularly notable, because in addition to getting some of his most wonderful cartoons, we also gain a sense of Watterson as a person. Approximately one-tenth of the book contains essays about matters great and small--from cartooning to life--and stories about the inspiration behind some of his greatest strips. Not surprisingly, Watterson shines through as a being of considerable integrity, and the cartoons gain in depth thanks to his commentary. And, of course, the cartoons in the other 90% of the book are alternately side-splitting hilarious or touching. Happy Anniversary, Bill, and good luck with whatever it is you are doing now! Editorial Descriptions are usually submitted by the manufacturers, publishers and authors. Contact us if you are one of them, and wish to change the above description. |
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Author: Guest
Best cartoon series that I can remember. Use it as a coffee table book for guests to flip through and enjoy. Very satisfied with condition when received.
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Author: Guest
Calvin And Hobbes...What A CLASSIC! It's hillarious, its clever, it's got everytihin! I bought this book as my first Calvin and Hobbes book years ago and I loved it immediatly! If im sad or upset, I just read this book and i'm happy again! IT's incredible! Watterson's commentary is an extra for this book and it's informative too. Also, this book has more strips than some of the other ones so buy this one! I hope this helped!
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Author: Guest
Having already owned every conceivable collection and reprint of Calvin and Hobbes material, I hardly needed a recap of the previous decade up to the point when this book was published. The attraction, then, had less to do with the smattering of strips that filled these pages and more to do with the bonus essays and commentaries that Watterson provides, shining some significant amount of insight onto the world of Calvin and Hobbes.
The first twenty pages or so are filled with Watterson's ruminations on the transformation (or devolution) of comics from their inception to the present day, licensing issues regarding his own strip, sabatticals, influences, the writing process, and his hard-won superior Sunday strip format. A lot of readers regard these essays (particularly the one dealing with licensing) as the verbal equivalent of Watterson patting himself on the back, but I firmly assert that any such interpretation can only result from entirely misreading Watterson's words. I can only conclude that Watterson's natural eloquence is confusing to those readers who are only capable of understanding illustrated stories, or else that they don't finish the essay before jumping to conclusions. A careful, complete read will guarantee clarity, as Watterson is extremely succint and therefore precise in the ideas he is communicating.
I only have two minor complaints regarding this edition, the first being that I would have appreciated a bit more analysis of the characters and their origins. I have read in interviews that an earlier strip of Watterson's contained an imaginative, tiger-toting younger brother of the protagonist, and it was only at an editor's suggestion that Watterson considered making these characters the focal point of the strip--which, needless to say, became by degrees the Calvin and Hobbes we know and love today. This information, along with a few of those old strips containing the "prototype" Calvin and Hobbes, would have made an excellent addition to the book.
My other complaint is that too much space is given to entire stories--weeks of strips--that are preceded by only one or two lines of commentary. I wish only a few strips from the entire story had been included, so as to free room for more material and resulting commentary.
Perhaps the biggest disappointment of all is the fact that Watterson retired shortly after publishing this compilation. I suppose I should feel grateful for the wonderful ten years that were given to us, and I certainly do, but another part of me wonders at all the possibilities that the next decade might have held for the two intrepid explorers as they discover a universe of humor, whimsy, imagination, tragedy, and friendship. The Tenth Anniversary Book highlights the brilliance of Calvin and Hobbes, and makes us realize how short ten years can really be.
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Author: Guest
My ex-girlfriend bought this book for me for Christmas and I was very pleased. Bill Watterson is one of the most intelligent comedy writers of all time. This collection gives descriptions of all the characters and explains their basic origins, as well as giving you hundreds of comics to read. Black and white as well as sunday comic strips. 5 stars!
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Author: Guest
To explain all the reasons why reading Calvin and Hobbes has always been a pleasure to me would take far too long to explain here. Suffice to say they are all gloriously on show in this tenth anniversary edition. This edition is an absolute necessity for anyone who enjoys Calvin and Hobbes' antics.
The normally reclusive Bill Watterson gives his thoughts on his strips, the world in which Calvin and Hobbes live and cartooning in general. He talks about the joy that cartooning as a career has given him and the reasons why he has refused to sell out and cash in on merchandising the Calvin and Hobbes brand.
Needless to say there is also a long parade of many of the most popular and memorable of the strips which means that it is fantastic and hilarious even for newcomers. Definitely worth the purchase.
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