The Complete Peanuts 1975-1976 (Vol. 13)  (The Complete Peanuts)
The complete Peanuts project reaches the halfway point with these 1975–76 strips attesting the timelessness of Schulz’s humor, despite the occasional topical note, as when Sally brings her pet rock to show and tell, and Lucy gives Schroeder Elton John glasses for Beethoven’s birthday. Comedy writer Robert Smigel observes in the introduction that these episodes are more absurd than what Schulz produced just a few years earlier. Even at its most extreme, such as when Peppermint Patty enrolls in a dog-obedience school after being given a brochure by Snoopy, the comedy remains warmly rooted in the characters’ endearing foibles. --Gordon Flagg