Your source for Peanuts books and the works of Charles M. Schulz.

Peanuts Histories and Biographies

Begun 2000. July 28th, 2010 revision

The book listed here are histories of the Peanuts strip and/or biographies of Schulz (the two are generally intertwined.) Some such books have been mostly strip reprints with some commentary, and drawing the line will between what is a history book and what is a strip reprint is hard. On the Strip Reprints page, you will find the following books with significant history or commentary: Celebrating Peanuts (the 60th anniversary book), Peanuts: A Golden Celebration (the 50th anniversary book), Peanuts Jubilee (the 25th anniversary book), Peanuts: The Art of Charles M. Schulz, and You Don't Look 35, Charlie Brown

  • 50 Years of Happiness: A Tribute to Charles M. Schulz by Derrick Bang * (HB) A handy reference volume put out by the Peanuts Collector Club
  • Charles M. Schulz: 40 Years Life and Art by Giovanni Trimboli * (HB) The 40th anniversary book. Strip reprints, and articles on Schulz and Peanuts by Schulz himself, his son Monte, Lee Mendelson, Umberto Eco, and others. An expensive, slipcased volume
  • Charles M. Schulz: Conversations edited by M. Thomas Inge, collects over a dozen interviews of Schulz, plus pieces on Schulz by G. B. Trudeau and Bill Watterson *
  • Charles M. Schulz: Cartoonist and Creator of Peanuts by Michael A. Schuman, part of the People To Know series aimed at young adults * (HB)
  • Charles M. Schulz by Cheryl Carlson. Part of the First Biographies series. A short biography aimed at kids. * (HB)
  • Charles Schulz by Cynthia Klingel and Robert B. Noyed. Part of the Wonders of Reading series. This is a ridiculously short biography aimed at kids. * (HB)
  • Charles Schulz by Barbara Marvis. Part of the Robbie Reader series. A short biography aimed at kids. * (HB)
  • Charles Schulz by Jim Whiting. Part of the Real-Life Reader biography series. This is a short biography aimed at kids. * (HB)
  • Charles Schulz by Mae Wood. Part of the Checkerboard Biography Library: Children's Authors series. This is a very short biography aimed at kids. * (HB)
  • Charles Schulz: Great Cartoonist (Reaching Your Goal) by Marilyn Mascola. A 1989 biography aimed at kids, part of the Reaching Your Goals series.
  • Charlie Brown and Charlie Schulz by Lee Mendelson * (HB) The 20th anniversary book
  • A Charlie Brown Christmas: The Making of a Tradition by Lee Mendelson, recounts the making of that TV special, with the script and sheet music. * (HB)
  • Charlie Brown, Snoopy and Me * (HB) by Charles Schulz with R. Smith Kiliper This kid-oriented book has a simple autobiography, as well as Schulz discussing the characters, illustrated with strips. This is a nice piece, but I don't want people thinking it's some sort of deep bare-your-soul piece; it's more in line with what you'll see in Peanuts Jubilee or Peanuts: A Golden Celebration.
  • Good Grief: The Story of Charles M. Schulz by Rheta Grimsley Johnson * The paperback edition, issued in 1995, has a five page update that was not in the 1990 hardcover.
  • Happy Birthday, Charlie Brown by Lee Mendelson * (HB) The 30th anniversary book
  • It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown: The Making of a Television Classic by Lee Mendelson, recounts the making of that TV special, with the script and sheet music. *
  • Me And Charlie Brown by Charlie Brown * A collection of Schulz essays from various sources, including the text portions of Peanuts Jubilee.
  • My Life with Charlie Brown by Charles Schulz * This is an autobiography of the real Charlie Brown, Schulz's co-worker at Art Instruction Schools after whom the comic strip character was named.
  • The Peanuts Collection by Nat Gertler * (US Little Brown, British New Holland, and Australian Cameron House editions) A slipcovered hardback book with a history of the strip, ooks at the characters, and lots of full-color pictures and flip-open and removable reproductions of classic items. Written by the creator of this guide.
  • The Peanuts Trivia & Reference book by Monte Schulz and Jody Millward * Co-written by Schulz's son, with what appears to be a new Schulz illo on the cover
  • Schulz and Peanuts by David Michaelis * (HB, preview softcover, and excerpt booklet) A major biography of Schulz, controversial primarily for claims about his personality that are denied by his family, notably that he was a cold and distant father.
  • Sparky: The Life and Art of Charles Schulz by Beverly Gherman * (HB) A biography aimed at the younger set.
  • They Called Him Sparky: Friends Reminiscences of Charles Schulz by David Liverett *Reminiscences and correspondences primarily from people he was involved with in the Church of God in the 1940s-1960s
  • Today's Best Nonfiction volume 7 * (HB) contains an abridged version of Good Grief: The Story of Charles M. Schulz.
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Notations used in this guide:

* = There's a copy of this book in the AAUGH.com reference library.

(HB) = The copy in the reference library is a hardcover (may not be noted on books available solely in hardcover.)

CB = Charlie Brown

Copyright 1992-2009 Nat Gertler
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This is a work-in-progress, and may contain errors or omissions. We accept no responsibility for any actions taken on the basis of this information.

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