The classic Calvin and Hobbes is a daily American comic strip created by cartoonist Bill Watterson that was syndicated from November 18, 1985, to December 31, 1995.
It follows the adventures of Calvin, a precocious, mischievous, and adventurous six-year-old boy, and Hobbes, his sardonic stuffed tiger. A smart child with poor grades in school, Calvin has a creative and philosophical mind but lacks restraint. He has a rich inner world and a precious friendship with his tiger. The anthropomorphic tiger is an independent creature with a dim view of human nature. He participates in all of Calvin’s activities, even when he knows it’s gonna end in trouble.
Calvin’s parents are typical middle-class, his father is a patent attorney and his mother is a stay-at-home mom. Calvin also interacts with Susie Derkins, a classmate who lives on the same street, Rosalyn, his babysitter, Mrs. Wormwood, his teacher, and Moe, the school bully.
Reading Calvin and Hobbes is the best way to kill time while we wait for life to shower us with meaning and happiness.
Calvin and Hobbes Books in Order:
The Complete Calvin and Hobbes
The Complete Calvin and Hobbes is available on hardcover or paperback. The hardcover edition is composed of three volumes while the paperback edition consists of four volumes, both of them in a sturdy slipcase.
- The Complete Calvin and Hobbes hardcover or paperback
All their adventures in this four-volume collection of every comic strip from the comic strip’s eleven-year history (1985 to 1996).
The new Calvin and Hobbes Portable Compendium
This is the latest collection to date, all the Calvin and Hobbes strips in a new compact, portable format that will fit easily into backpacks as well as on the collector’s shelf of old and new readers.Seven volumes are announced.
- The Calvin and Hobbes Portable Compendium Set 1
Featuring nearly 500 comics from the strip’s debut in November 1985 through March 1987 - The Calvin and Hobbes Portable Compendium Set 2
Featuring nearly 500 comics presented chronologically from March 1987 to July 1988 - The Calvin and Hobbes Portable Compendium Set 3
Featuring nearly 500 comics presented chronologically from June 1988 to November 1989. - The Calvin and Hobbes Portable Compendium Set 4
Will be released on March 2025. Featuring nearly 500 comics presented chronologically from December 1989 to April 1991.
The Original Calvin and Hobbes Paperback Collection
- Calvin and Hobbes
Strips from November 18, 1985 to August 17, 1986. Foreword by Garry Trudeau. - Something Under the Bed Is Drooling
Strips from August 18, 1986 to May 23, 1987. Foreword by Pat Oliphant. - Yukon Ho!
Strips from May 24, 1987 to February 21, 1988.
- Weirdos from Another Planet!
Strips from February 22, 1988 to December 4, 1988. Some strips from November are also found in The Revenge of the Baby-Sat. - The Revenge of the Baby-Sat
Strips from December 5, 1988 to September 10, 1989. - Scientific Progress Goes “Boink”
Strips from September 11, 1989 to July 7, 1990. Some strips from June and July are also found in Attack of the Deranged Mutant Killer Monster Snow Goons. - Attack of the Deranged Mutant Killer Monster Snow Goons
Strips from July 8, 1990 to April 10, 1991. - The Days Are Just Packed
Strips from April 11, 1991 to November 1, 1992 excluding May 5, 1991 to Feb 1, 1992 due to repeats. - Homicidal Psycho Jungle Cat
Strips from November 2, 1992 to August 29, 1993. - There’s Treasure Everywhere
Strips from August 30, 1993 to April 8, 1995 excluding April 3 to December 31, 1994 due to repeats. Some strips from March and April 1995 are also found in It’s a Magical World. - It’s a Magical World
Strips from March 20, 1995 to December 31, 1995. Some strips from March and April are also found in There’s Treasure Everywhere.
A part of those strips are also collected in:
- The Essential Calvin and Hobbes: A Calvin and Hobbes Treasury
- All strips from Calvin and Hobbes and Something Under the Bed Is Drooling. Foreword by Charles M. Schulz.
- The Authoritative Calvin and Hobbes: A Calvin and Hobbes Treasury
- All strips from Yukon Ho! and Weirdos from Another Planet! Includes a Seven-page story in which Calvin becomes an elephant.
- The Indispensable Calvin and Hobbes: A Calvin and Hobbes Treasury
- All strips from The Revenge of the Baby-Sat and Scientific Progress Goes “Boink” and Several illustrated poems.
Special Anthologies
No new strips in those anthologies, but insight into the cartooning process and other original materials.
- The Calvin and Hobbes Lazy Sunday Book: A Collection of Sunday Calvin and Hobbes Cartoons
Strips from May 24, 1987 to July 30, 1989. Sunday strips only. - The Calvin and Hobbes Tenth Anniversary Book
Collection of strips chosen by the author. Commentary by Watterson and annotations on individual strips. - Calvin and Hobbes: Sunday Pages, 1985-1995
Collection of Sunday strips chosen by the author. Original sketches and commentary by Watterson.
Other Books
- Teaching with Calvin and Hobbes
Rare piece of officially licensed Calvin and Hobbes merchandise. Fifty-seven strips comprising five stories: “The Binoculars,” “The Find,” “The Christmas Story,” “The Bug Collection,” and “The Report”. - Exploring Calvin and Hobbes: An Exhibition Catalogue
Catalog for the exhibit by the same name at the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum at Ohio State University. Original art and commentary by Watterson.