Let’s Go Exploring

At one time, before the advent of that internet thing, we all read newspapers, pretty much everyday. And, on Sundays, we devoted hours to going through all the Sunday sections, most particularly, everyone's favorite section - the Sunday funnies. Nowadays newspapers barely exist and their buildings such as the LA Times building are vacant and deserted and lifeless. I haven't picked up a paper in ages except the complimentary hotel copies. But the Sunday funnies ruled and in the eighties - besides Peanuts -there was Calvin and Hobbes. Calvin and Hobbes was the best!

This fairly short book examines the comic strip, talks about how wonderful it was, and how Bill Watterson ended the strip, and went into seclusion. Great book. Doesn't try to make the comic fit into any preconceived ideas.

Let's Go Exploring: Calvin and Hobbes was an entertaining and informative book for me since, although I very much enjoy Calvin and Hobbes, I didn't discover it until well after its newspaper run had ended (I didn't learn to read until about halfway through it, and we were overseas for the rest). So while some fans may be well aware of the timeline of the strip, this was all new information to me, so very interesting.

Aside from tracing the evolution of the strip and creator Bill Watterson's career, the author spends some time analyzing what it was about this strip that made it so beloved by nearly everyone, covering major characters and familiar elements -- as he mentions early on, there are "haters" for just about anything, but very rarely for Calvin and Hobbes. This part (the first couple chapters) was enjoyable and can help fans feel a sense of commonality in their appreciation of the strip, without getting bogged down in details or overanalysis.

The final chapter covers the numerous tributes and homages that have continued to try and help fans fill the gap left by Calvin and Hobbes since its end. This was slightly less interesting to me, but at the same time it also ponders the question of why so many felt the need to find closure in the first place, and demonstrates the degreee to which Calvin and Hobbes has become a pop culture icon, even without lucrative licensing.

(Thanks to NetGalley for the review copy.)

I've read previous entries in the Pop Classics series and really enjoyed them - it gives you a slim, in-depth look at the deeper meaning and legacy a piece of pop culture might have had. Calvin and Hobbes feels like a perfect selection for this series, but the actual look into its legacy makes some good points about what it has to say about imagination, childhood, and creative control of your artwork, but never really chases any of these points down fully enough to be satisfying on any of them. This is a pretty slim volume and breezy read, but I wanted it to go further.

Overall an interesting book about my all-time favorite comic strip and its creator. Well-written and researched, interesting while avoiding becoming boring.

As an educational reference for the unforgettable Clavin and Hobbes, Let's Go Exploring gives a lot of background and explains why we lost Calvin and company too soon. If you are a casual fan, you won't like this book. This isn't some fun insight into the comics. At first, I was discouraged by the lack of strips, but it made sense as I truly understood what this book was about. For a fan like me, this book gave me closure. I learned a lot about how the comic industry works and how cartoonists are treated. I learned a lot about Bill Waterson and the history of Calvin and Hobbes. It was like learning more about your middle school best friend who moved away and you didn't know why and then you connect on Facebook years later and get the whole story.

My family and I were/are huge C/H fans. We bought our sons every book published and bought replacements when they wore out. So I am very enthusiastic about this book. The author has done his research and presents an entertaining and insightful book. Highly recommended.
My thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. I'd previously read "Looking for Calvin and Hobbes" by Nevin Martell, and I was a little hesitant to read this, thinking it would be more of the same. I was happily surprised, as it gave a bit more background information, and read like journalism, instead of the work of a super intense fan. I felt like I came away from "Let's Go Exploring" book with more of an appreciation of "Calvin and Hobbes", but I do wish there had been more (although that's typically the case with the "Pop Classics" series). Overall, it was nice to get more info, especially because I was very young when the strip ended, and didn't get the full effect until later in life when I purchased all of the collected books. I definitely recommend this to anyone who is a big fan of the strip, although many of them may know a great deal of this already. Quick and easy read; left me feeling informed, but still wanting more.

If you liked the comic Calvin and Hobbes, then this book is right up your alley. It talks about the comics and how it affected society. And really, who didn't love Calvin and Hobbes? If you needed a smile or a laugh, it was time to read Calvin and Hobbes. When it ended,it made me sad, just as it did for so many. It is a great companion book for those who loved the comic. Fun and short to read. Give it a try!

Calvin and Hobbes was my generations' reason to read the newspaper, and Michael Hingston examines why. This book kept me reading way past bedtime. It made me happy/sad. Let's Go Exploring is written conversationally which I really appreciated. He captures all the whimsy and yes, the sadness that Calvin and Hobbes is no more. Mr Hingston gives the background on the strip's creator and his reasons for stopping the strip. I was not aware that the comic's creator never licensed the Calvin and Hobbes images and the reasoning behind his decision. Calvin and Hobbes have stood the test of time, and Michael Hingston does them and their creator, as well as their impact, justice.
I can see this book as a discussion group selection, as I certainly want to share, discuss, and debate.