Scientific Progress Goes 'Boink': A Calvin and Hobbes Collection (original 1991; edition 1991)

Calvin and Hobbes is one of the best loved of comic strips, and is equally appreciated by children and adults. It ran as a syndicated strip only from 1985 through 1995. However, it lives on through compilations such as this one.

This book offers an excellent collection of Calvin and Hobbes' funniest cartoons. My favorites are among the ones presented here. Five stars for this collection ! ( )

A Calvin and Hobbes collection in which Stupendous Man fights Baby Sitter Girl, Spaceman Spiff escapes an alien menace, Tracer Bullet investigates a mystery, multiple duplicates wreak havoc, and peer pressure (and a phobia of cooties) leads Calvin to attempt to play baseball during recess. Funny stuff.
--J. ( )

When I got pregnant, my family joked that I didn't need parenting books, just a complete collection of Calvin and Hobbes books. I love these comics. ( )

"Scientific Progress Goes 'Boink'" is a collection of ""Calvin and Hobbes"" comic strips by Bill Watterson. The strips document the misadventures of Calvin, a small boy, and his stuffed toy tiger, Hobbes (who comes to life in Calvin's vivid imagination). In this volume we see Calvin's alter egos (daring interplanetary adventurer Spaceman Spiff, private eye Tracer Bullet), get a lesson in Calvinball ("No sport is less organized than Calvinball!), witness the rampage of the Calvinosaurus, and attend meetings of the G.R.O.S.S. (Get Rid Of Slimy girlS) club.
Many of the storylines in this book have a strong science fiction element: in Calvin's imagination, his "personal gravity polarity" is reversed; he turns into a giant; etc. But the most fun comes when Calvin decides to clone himself. Much of the humor springs from the discontinuity between Calvin's rich fantasy world and the perspective of his often frustrated parents. Through it all, Hobbes remains a witty and philosophical pal to the mischievous Calvin.
C&H is a comic strip that is both consistently funny and consistently intelligent. The art is great, especially in the fantasy sequences (check out the noirish milieu of Tracer Bullet, for example). Calvin himself is a nonconformist, a terror to authorities of all types, a dreamer and a schemer -- he's one of the all-time great comic strip characters, and "Scientific Progress" is a great showcase for him and Hobbes.

Simply superb: original and imaginative, hilarious and thoughtful, passionate and sweet. ( )