The Bottom Line
Pros
- Beautiful jacket composition and interior layout, with innovative, colorful designs.
- Captures the essence of Schulz's style, so that visuals as much as words contribute to the book.
- Engaging anecdotes.
- Offers a touching insight into the life of a man who helped shape cartooning and animation.
- Accessible to readers of all ages.
Cons
- ...I found a grammatical error on the first page. Tsk tsk.
- Some of the color choices, like red text on mustard yellow, are hard to read.
Description
- A comprehensive look into Schulz's life, and how he shaped it into colorful, whimsical art that reached many audiences.
- A book for all ages, capable of painting history through different eyes and showing how Schulze influenced our world.
- Vividly designed and written to capture the spirit of Schulz and the characters of Peanuts.
Guide Review - Book Review: Sparky - The Life and Art of Charles Schulz
The cover itself uses colorful, blocky strips with panels from the Peanuts comic, and the interior design combines bright color and cartoonish lines to make you feel like you're reading just another strip with a few extra words. There's a certain magic to the design that builds anticipation before you even open the cover; it definitely took me back to my childhood. Even the table of contents is cleverly portrayed as comic speech bubbles, with Schulz's classic wobbly outlines.
Beyond mere design, the book tells a very earthy story of a young artist and his ideals - describing Schulz as "always drawing," an apt observation that many artists and animators can identify with. His nickname "Sparky" even came from a comic strip, as we find out on the first page - and through the book, we discover how life influenced his art. Vivid imagery tells a story, rather than just recounting dry fact; true to the creativity of her subject, Gherman tells the story of Schulz with a whimsical imagination that delights even when talking of the trials of childhood, or the difficulties in the famous artist's later life.
The story of persistence, success, failure, love, and loss is interspersed with strips from the Peanuts comic that aptly portray the emotion of the moment, and show how Snoopy, Charlie Brown and the gang have touched everything from individual lives to the lives of NASA scientists fighting to connect Snoopy and Charlie Brown modules in space during 1969 preparations for the Apollo 11 voyage. From his marriage through his work, his children, his divorce, and eventually his death, Schulz reached millions and left a lasting influence on generations. Gherman's narrative captures that influence impeccably, with perfect balances of love, humor, and wistfulness.
On the very last page is printed a letter from Schulz:
Dear Friends,
I have been fortunate to draw Charlie Brown and his friends for almost 50 years. It has been the fulfillment of my childhood ambition.
Unfortunately, I am no longer able to maintain the schedule demanded by a daily comic strip. My family does not wish Peanuts to be continued by anyone else, therefore I am announcing my retirement.
I have been grateful for the loyalty of our editors and the wonderful support and love expressed to me by fans of the comic strip.
Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus, Lucy...how can I ever forget them...
Charles Schulz
How, indeed.
A beautiful book.
