Some of the glory days of Schulz's work: educational, at times political, whimsical, and a classic collection of characters. Best read over time (I tend to read a couple of weeks' worth before bed most nights) rather than lapped up, unless of course you are a complete addict. Already the series has come a long way from its roots, but still retains a hefty chunk of the philosophy and simplicity of the early days. I don't believe there had been any television or film specials by this point, so the whiff of commercialisation still only lingered at the margins. Not for much longer. ( )

Snoopy temporarily becomes Head Beagle, and of course power goes to his head, and the Little Red-Haired girl leaves town. Don't get me wrong, "Peanuts" is a great strip, but it's not usually a gut-buster. But one of the absolute funniest strips from the series is on page 69, a Sunday strip in which Snoopy is sleeping on the baseball field, and lets an easy fly ball drop behind him. Charlie Brown chews him out, and apologizes remorsefully after Snoopy bursts into tears. Then the same thing happens again. Drop-dead funny, perfectly laid-out, and yet uncharacteristic of the more wry humor of the rest of the strip. ( )