Excellent collection with excellent printing quality.
The paper is fantastic and the bindings are sturdy.
It is truly a collector's edition, hands down.

I got this as a Christmas gift for one of my best friends, and it was a hit -- I only wish I bought one for myself! If you're a Calvin and Hobbes fan, this is a must have... you can spend hours at a time reading it. Bill Watterson is a genius.

Gave this to my son for College Graduation. Waterson has the great ability to use humor and insight to make your day better. I use it for relaxation and I wanted my son to have the same experience. Reading it makes a tough day seem not so bad.

If you're a Calvin and Hobbes fan then you'll probably want to buy this collection, but this recommendation comes with a warning. The packaging and print quality is sadly not all that it should be. On my copy the advertising glue has remained stuck to the fabric of the box, and the fabric has come unstuck at the opening of the box as soon as I removed the first volume from it. The print quality is generally very good, but in places you can see artefacts where the ink has run on the backing paper. Having the entire collection in one place is a really great idea, just let down by the execution of the packaging.

Anyone who has read and enjoys Calvin and Hobbs needs to have this collection. It is fantastic and the quick turn around service on ordering was great. I highly recommend both.

I just got back from my post office here in Oslo Norway. The little woman who went back to get this package for me looked less than thrilled. This is HEAVY!

Well, anyhow, I just had my first look at this and it's stunning. Calvin and Hobbes deserve no less.

1987. It's been that many years since I was in Denmark on holiday and bought my first volume of Calvin and Hobbes? (Steen & Stoffer in Danish, Tommy & Tigern in Norwegian). Wow, how time flies.

Calvin and Hobbes have been a great influence on me. I have tried and failed over the years to be a cartoonist or graphic artist myself, but my failure aside, this series really pushed me in conveying ideas with simple yet effective drawings. And that's the crux of this whole success. Amazing yet simple art, effective storytelling, heart, cheekyness, flights of fantasy and even a bit of insanity.

Calvin and Hobbes is all about lost youth to me, and I always pictured the last Calvin and Hobbes showing Calvin walking past Hobbes, with Hobbes no longer a living tiger, but being just a stuffed toy. Calvin realising that this time of his life is over, bursting into tears, and running to his mother for comfort.

Instead he left us, looking for adventure in the woods behind his house with his best friend, destined to live forever in an endless summer.

When a cartoon gets to you on so many levels, does it seize being a cartoon? I'm not sure you can even use the word about something as monumental as this, but don't let that put you off. This is great literature, and you should own it simply to show people that you are a kid at heart, and that you know a great body of work when you see it.

Very good collection! Shipping should have more padding to protect box hich is quite heavy and avoid denting.

Ever since the Far Side collection came out, I had dreamed of the day they released a Calvin and Hobbes set.
It's a great collection and looks good too.

The books are heavy, and a little bit big, so if you have a small bookcase, you might not be able to fit this on the shelves easily.

Bill Watterson managed in a relatively short time to fulfill something few cartoonist do in their entire careers: to create 2 classic an enternal characters, worthy of a place of honor in the Pantheon of comic strips, right along the Peanuts gang & Garfield.

And then, when he felt he had accomplished the goal set for himself, and had nothing left to prove to anyone, Watterson decided to say good-bye to his beloved hyper-active 6-year old & his inseparable feline accomplice just when they were at the top of their game; free to continue their amazing adventures fueled by the inexhaustible imagination of Calvin, their fantasy world unlimited except for when it's time to go to bed or finish homework--and sometimes not even then!

In this beautifully-crafted box collection resides the entirety of Calvin & Hobbes, from the very first strips that appeared on newspapers in 1986, to the very last sledding trip they took to explore their "magical world".

Now I know what some of you may be thinking, because I had the same doubts: "sure they look nice, but IS IT WORTH IT?". Well, in this humble enthusiast's opinion, the answer is a rotund "yes!".

For starters these books are HUGE. They let you focus on every tiny detail Watterson drew, inked and painted that made this strip stand out from the rest; all the attention and love he used to portray those wonderful dinosaurs, or the woods where Calvin & Hobbes spent so many idle hours together. In fact, the size of the books may be ironically the very single thing I may not like about them, but only because it is kind of uncomfortable to enjoy these jewels if you're already tucked in your bed! No, I recommend instead that you to choose a nice comfy armchair when perusing the alien landscapes of "Spaceman Spiff", or the heroic deeds of "Stupendous Man" fighting the evil "Mom Lady".

The quality of the paper is also of note, along with the printing that managed to capture all the richness & subtleties of the watercolors Watterson enjoyed so much to apply in his work. The man truly believed in the art of his medium and felt his readers deserved nothing but the best of what could come out of him.

So overall I seriously urge you to consider the investment of acquiring this wonderful collection. These books are intended to last a lifetime, and will probably be a matter of protest between your future inheritors--unless of course, you end up deciding you want to be buried with them :-)

If you love Calvin and Hobbes, this is it! My husband got this for me for Christmas and II think it's the best present ever. I don't have to miss them any more; I have everything in this set!

Product was delivered well on time, however unfortunately the case was slightly damaged. As this is a collector's item I would have appreciated if the book was wrapped in bubble plastic, instead of that it was just put in the box without any protection.

This is the only reason I rated it 4 stars instead of 5, because the book itself is great. I always enjoyed the comics and I was delighted to see that a collection was available in the original language (something not easy to get in my country). Certainly an excellent gift or treat for someone who is a fan of Calvin & Hobbes!

One of my favorite complete edition. The comics are so well printed and some gems like the postface interview are really valuable.
Must buy.

If you love Calvin & Hobbess, this is for you. It includes every C&H ever made, plus a couple of extras. The artwork is stunning, both the color and black & white cartoons.
There was only one only glitch in the product; the bindings of one book was not well attached to the pages, and within a few minutes of opening the book, the pages started to separate.
However, when I contacted Amazon, they immediately shipped a new copy. The bindings were fine on the new books, so everything turned out fine. I really have to compliment Amazon for moving fast on this.
In summary: Great product and Great Service

For everyone who has children in the age 6+ an absolute 'must have'. You recognize Calvin's behaviour and even more, your own! Very good quality paper and binding!

This collection contains all Calvin and Hobbes strips ever published; that is, everything there is to know about this phenomenally popular comic. You can follow all the stories chronologically and admire the procession of drawing style from the first baby steps into perfection, and the development of the characters from obvious slapstick into the fusion of humour and philosophy that finally rose Calvin and Hobbes into world fame. This complete collection, hardbound in a stylish box, also comes at a very affordable price. You will not miss a single pearl of C&H's comic satire or any of Watterson's numerous Sunday artworks.

I bought this as a birthday present for my husband and I couldn't lift it, it was so heavy! He loves it and reads it all the time. He says there's lots of other interesting stories and information in there besides the comics.

I just got my collection in the mail and I must say am I impressed. I was a little bit nervous after reading so many reviews about pages falling out and the pictures on the books being glued on. I just want to let everyone know that this is not the case. The only place where the pictures are glued on is the outside of the case, they seem to be glued on very well but if you tried real hard I am sure you could rip them off.

Dottygal touched on this, the binding. I may not know a lot about books but the binding appears to be sewn in. It is not sewn into the spine, but they are all sewn together. I am very excited about my purchase. The layout of each strip will blow you away. Very professional looking.
Alright well that is it, this review was meant to supplement Dottygal's just to let people know the newer editions of the books don't appear to have the same flaws as older reviewers state.

What's not to like! Every C&H cartoon strip I've ever seen, and many I haven't -- with original dates of publication listings. I got this at Amazon for 10s of dollars cheaper than offered at retail stores. This set will last years, and offer me, my five kids and THEIR kids DAYS of C&H rainy day reading fun. Cheers to Bill Watterson for creating a rich character and a beautifully-illustrated, boundary-stretching strip. And thanks to Watterson for validating my own very Calvin-like childhood.

If you don't have all the individual books, get this. It's great - contains everything Mr. Watterson created for Calvin and Hobbes. Terrific to read it end to end, but that's only gonna happen if you have the flu or serious bad weather. Put it in the guest bedroom!

Waterson's masterful calligraphic drawing style deserves this high-quality printing on fine, rich paper. I had to use a magnifying loupe to see the half-tone dots. The characters breathe; the colors shine. The set of books is stunningly beautiful.

I have had this set for a while. And I am always giddy to open up any of the volumes and relax while my eyes well up with tears of laugher. I have read some of the other reviews. And while opinions do vary, and to each his own, I can not for the life of me figure out how anyone could for any reason not give this at least four and half stars. The reviews that complain about how heavy the set is?!? It is supposed to be heavy!!! It is well made. It includes every strip ever published by Watterson over his ten year tenure. How could it not be heavy? Listen...if you like Calvin and Hobbes at all,...this set is worth buying. If I did not have it already, I would pay the listed price of $150 and feel like I got a good deal. All three volumes fit warm and snug inside a nice slip case. And it is in complete chronological order. This is a treasure to be had!!!

I was hesitant to purchase this item after reading the various disparaging reviews in regards to the binding and overall quality. (Many people have had issues with glued rather than stitched binding causing pages to fall out, I have also heard people mention the pictures on the cover of each book were glued on squares that peeled off when taking the volumes in and out.) However, being a hardcore C&H "Fanboy" I was willing to take what I could get... and I have NO REGRETS! The first thing I noticed about the volumes was that the pictures on the front and back of each one were NOT GLUED ON they were printed. I then opened the book to examine the binding, I am no expert but it sure looked stitched to me, there was string at various points running through minute holes from top to bottom. I even bent it furthur back than you normally would during normal use and it stood up to the "abuse" beautifully! Curious as to why my set had none of the flaws I read about I flipped to the "legal jargon" page where I noted the Print Dates. 1st Printing October 2005, 4th Printing October 2006.. I have not confirmed this with Andrews & McMeel but it would appear that these issues have been corrected in the latest printing. SWEEEET! (I would be interested to hear from the people with issues to see what print dates they have.) Long story Longer, this set is beautifully put together and is a must have for any Fan or "Fanboy"!
The price on Amazon is amazingly reasonable when you factor in the FREE SHIPPING and I add up how much money I spent on the originals. Treat yourself, you totally deserve it!

If you are a Calvin and Hobbes fan this is a MUST HAVE!!! Every comic strip ever written is in these three volumes.

Since I started reading Calvin & Hobbes over 10 years ago I've been longing to lay my hands on something like this. If I ever had any fear on getting disappointed it's completely vanished: this edition is by far the best I could have expected. The quality of the print is great, the colours are neat and there are no stains or badly printed areas. The format of the stripes is kept as they were originally published, there's even a foreword by the author. The design of the books is very good, despite the fact they are quite heavy and it's hard to find an appropriate shelf for them due to their size, when you open and you realise they're the right size to fit the stripes and full-page comics. In overall you can see the editors made an effort to give us a great quality product.
Regarding the contents, if you've ever read any Calvin & Hobbes you don't need me to describe them, and if you haven't I strongly recommend you to do so, they're a piece of art, simply the best comic you can find around.
The shipping and handling from Amazon were perfect, I received the package 5 days earlier than I expected, despite the fact that I ordered it from Europe and xhose the regular delivery it was quite fast. The packing was very good, I received the books in perfect condition.

Sure there are minor flaws that others have noticed, not being able to take the books out of the case easily, and my wish that they use more matte paper so the light doesn't glare on it so much, however, this is a FANTASTIC set and a good purchase!I'm a big fan of Calvin and Hobbes, and of good-quality books, and this set brings both together nicely. It is great to have all the strips together in one set, along with a lengthy introduction by Bill Watterson himself. This set certainly pays fitting tribute to a great comic strip!

This is the best Calvin and Hobbes anthology I've ever seen, and we've collected C&H books for YEARS.

Halarious comics of Calvin and his stuffed tiger Hobbes . Calvin thinks of lots of imaginary things,and play sports different ways.

The books are beautiful. Actually, if I were to change anything, I might make them less magnificent so they weren't so heavy! But the large format and high quality paper and printing enhanced my sense of emersion in the strip -- and it was a joy to be reemersed in this long-missed world. Also, I enjoyed hearing Watterson's comments about his time doing the strip, from the pre-Calvin and Hobbs days through to his decision to end on a high note. If you're a C & H fan, you'll love these books.

Much larger, heavier, and solid than I was hoping for, this collection lovingly recreates the entire works of Calvin and Hobbes for their fans. Each page is beautifully printed on special paper and leather-bound. Definitely not books to read in bed (as you'd break your wrists holding them!), instead take the time to enjoy them and relive the memories.

Exceptional value.

This colection has a very good paper and pretty colors. The book is very heavy (be careful or you might torn the 2nd paper cover, as I did) but is a fine piece to have in the shelf. I recommend to whom like Calvin and Hobbes.

A while back I happened upon a few of the old Calvin and Hobbes compilations and upon reading them was reminded of just how rich and funny these cartoons were. When C&H finally walked off into the sunset, I eagerly awaited the final farewell strip, and was cruelly disappointed when the local news distributor declined to import any newspapers on that day. (I live on a remote Alaskan island) The Complete Calvin and Hobbes has healed that wound. I'd forgotten how funny, in particular the snowmen cartoons were. The 3 volume set is beautifully done, all printed chronologically and dated. Beautiful color repro, nice paper. Volumes are quite heavy. If this is your cup of tea, it's well worth it.

This complete Calvin and Hobbes collection is a boon for all who watched the depiction of an imaginative little boy's fantasies unfold. Many of the former little boys who stumbled upon the strip, whether in the newspapers or in the periodic small collections, treasured it because Watterson got us right, if weird, just about every time. Many of our own kids, taught right, learned to treasure Calvin and Hobbes, just as much.

Wow :) Those comics are so fun ! And here in France, buying the entire collection would have been very, very expensive (about 16 euro per book, and there are 12 of them !). This original collection only costed me 75 euro, and it was there in about 10 days :)

You know what ? I'm happy...

Calvin and Hobbes can't get better then this if you like these to characters. Fun to read over and over!

This is a fantastic collection! If you grew up when this was in print, you probably remember it with great fondness. It maintains a certain amount of insight while remaining genuinely funny. Buy this!

My daughter, who teaches Junior College, has always been a fan of Calvin and Hobbes. She has wanted this book since it first came out. This year I ordered it for her Christmas present. It came right on time, was new as expected, and the look of surprise and happiness on her face was worth every dollar I spent.

I have followed and read Calvin and Hobbs since it started. I have the individual compilations, actually, I lent them to my grandkids. The bound collection is superb, excellent quality. I even gave a set to our adult daughter for her birthday. Buy it!

Randall Evans

An absolute must for all Calvin & Hobbes Fans. Everything in one spot is great.

Imprescindible!!
Està en inglés, claro, pero està todo lo publicado por Bill Waterson sobre Calvin & Hobbes y las tiras están ordenadas cronológicamente. Esto es algo que en España hemos carecido (Ediciones B en España ha publicado mucho material de Calvin & Hobbes pero lo ha hecho sin seguir ningún orden cronológico).Con esta edición podrás contemplar como ha evolucionado el arte del autor y la psicología de los personajes a lo largo del tiempo. Cada tira viene con su fecha de publicación.
Que excelente excusa para practicar nuestro oxidado inglés ...

Saludos desde España!!

I read Calvin and Hobbes when I was younger (10 or so?) and I enjoyed the silly humor revolving around mainly Calvin and his strange antics. Now I love it for the seemingly random philosophical musings about life, which usually occur right before the duo fly off a cliff on their sled. This is a series that I think people of all ages can enjoy, and with the Complete Calvin and Hobbes, you get to read all of them in one go! It does weigh a lot, but it's well worth it.

I do so miss Watterson's comics. I had been delaying on this one because of the price, but I'm glad I finally ponied up. I have always respected Watterson's decision to end the strip rather than watch his work be distorted by commercialization, but from a selfish point of view, I would have liked one or two more years of the strip.

I especially enjoyed Watterson's essay at the beginning of book 1. It offered interesting insights as to who he is, how the strip came to be, and why he felt it was time to say farewell to C & H.

I'll be delving through these precious books for years to come.

I was so great to find this just before Christmas, Like always when ordering from Amazon it was there in just a couple of days. It made a very special gift to my new son-in-law. Thank you.

This is a great set! It is high quality printing in sturdy books. Makes you miss the daily cartoon even more!

This 3 volume set is beautifully laid out and contains every Calvin and Hobbes cartoon published in newspapers. The artwork is well done and it has good background information on the artist and his work. A must have for the Calvin and Hobbes fan!

I had no idea how heavy those books are. They are beautifully printed, Hardcover Books. It was a present for my son. He is reading every morning and before he goes to bed. Even my husband got into it. The Cartoons contain some big words. Now my son would like a digital dictionary for his room, so can look up the words he doesn't know quickly!

I got this set for my dad for his birthday and he loved it. He had a few of the smaller paperback collections, but this set allows him to access the entire collection.

I ordered this for a friend for his wife. He had checked it out at Borders Books for $150. His wife loved it and he saved quite a lot of $. The free shipping was the icing on the cake!

I've been a C&H fan since I was a kid, and the fact that all the strips are now in one location, and I can read them whenever I like, makes me very very happy. You'll never find more poignant, unique and laugh-out-loud humor in the comics again--it's a tribute to childhood, friendship, imagination and life, so pick this up before it goes out of print. A great addition to any library, or something to keep handy by the nightstand. Read a week's worth, then head to bed with a grin on your face. My only regret is that Watterson stopped drawing the comic.

I ordered this product for x-mas for my husband and he was so delighted about it. The package was shipped faster and arrived alot early than was expected.

This is a gorgeous, high quality collection. The printing is lovely, the paper is heavy and very rich.

My only complaints are that I wish the author's introduction was longer and that this is a heavy, heavy set which makes pulling the volumes out and reading a bit inconvenient.