Many Faces of Snoopy

Many Faces of SnoopyThe new book Many Faces of Snoopy is a sort of book that we’ve seen pop up a few times, a strip collection focusing on Snoopy’s various personas. (That’s not a complaint; it’s a good idea, not everyone has all the old collections that I do already at hand, and with a strip that’s not been in production for over a decade and a half, there really is only so much “new” that one can expect. Although a previous one actually had the same title with the word The added to the front, just to confuse those of us who track Peanuts books) This is a small, square hardback presenting one daily on each page, except for the two cases where the personas they’re exploring only appeared in one strip, in which case it’s stretched across two pages (allowing the spread introducing the next person to be across two pages.) Characters covered include Joe Cool, Joe Preppy, the Flying Ace, the Secret Agent, the Beagle Scout, the Masked Marvel, Flashbeagle, and the Fierce Pirate.

The one displeasure I take in the book is that the strips, which are reproduced in color, have a very jaggy-looking black line. This probably won’t chafe most readers the way that it does me.

My favorite part of the book is actually the back cover, a nice shot of the Secret Agent casting a long shadow into a darkened room.

$9.99. published by Andrews McMeel Publishing.

Now as I said, the folks who make these books like to make my life hard. There is also just recently released a board book called The Many Faces of Snoopy, using the same logo (it seems to be a current campaign, there are also calendars available.) This, while discussing Snoopy’s various personas, is not a strip reprint. And I missed ordering it because I thought I already had! Now I’ve got stuff to buy!

themany

 

Classic finds
Review: Christmas Gift Certificates for You

When I ordered a copy of the 1981 Hallmark Peanuts product Christmas Gift Certificates for You, I reckoned it would be one of those novelty coupon books, each page removable and offering the recipient a walk in the snow, help taking down the tree, or some Peanuts-y equivalent thereof. I …

New releases
A pop-up shows up

Here Comes Charlie Brown!: A Peanuts Pop-up, Gene Kannenberg, Jr.’s adaptation of the very first Peanuts strip, is not the first Peanuts book to reprint only a single strip. There was at least one board book that did much the same thing. However, that board book was, at heart, a …

Classic finds
English Phrases to Comfort Your Heart

The next book in my Amazon Japan shipment falls into the adorable category of “Peanuts used to explain American culture”. English Phrases to Comfort Your Heart with Snoopy by Nobu Yamada falls into that category. It also falls into the category of “books which are meant to be destroyed”, as each …