There no question in my mind that The Peanuts is the most lasting comic strip of the 20th century. Sure, The Far Side was good for a laugh. Calvin and Hobbes was trendy for a time. The Peanuts have staying power.

While reading through these two years, I was struck by the sense of rhythm in the strip. Every season and holiday returned with familiar variations on their theme: Valentine’s Day dejection, spring-time pitching mound failures, back to school stress, Halloween’s Great-Pumpkin, Beethoven’s birthday, and Christmas pageants all come and go like familiar friends.

Now on to 1965 . . .

Schulz, Charles. The Complete Peanuts: 1963–1964. Fantagraphics, 2007.