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Calvin and Hobbes #6
Scientific Progress Goes "Boink"
In this collection, Calvin and his tiger-striped sidekick Hobbes are hilarious whether the two are simply lounging around philosophizing about the future of mankind or plotting their latest money-making scheme. Chock-full of the familiar adventures of Spaceman Spiff, findings of Dad's popularity poll, and time travel to the Jurassic Age, Scientific Progress Goes "Boink" is guaranteed to set scientific inquiry back an eon—and advance the reading pleasure of all Calvin and Hobbes fans.
128 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1991
58 people are currently reading
1675 people want to read
About the author
Bill Watterson
398 books4,856 followersBill Watterson (born William Boyd Watterson II) is an American cartoonist, and the author of the comic strip "Calvin and Hobbes". His career as a syndicated cartoonist ran from 1985 to 1995; he stopped drawing "Calvin and Hobbes" at the end of 1995 with a short statement to newspaper editors and his fans that he felt he had achieved all he could in the comic strip medium. During the early years of his career he produced several drawings and additional contributions for "Target: The Political Cartoon Quarterly". Watterson is known for his views on licensing and comic syndication, as well as for his reclusive nature.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 304 reviews
July 31, 2024
A great book of the series again! The title story is the best of all!
The Christmas poem is really charming, I love moments like this. :)
The Christmas poem is really charming, I love moments like this. :)
March 6, 2022
Yes it is more Calvin and his fearless tiger friend, who is for those not knowing a pet stuffed Tiger which in the fantasy of a little boy is alive and his best friend.
In this instalment we find out that Calvin's father does nothing really to stop his sons fantasies he is quite capable to tell a tall tale but he truly loves his kid even if he wanted a dog in first instance. Calvin's nemesis is the neighbour girl named Susie who is sometimes too much involved in his shenanigans and hopes each day that a moving truck is parked in front of Calvin's house.
The book is full of fun, adventure and laughter as all previous books difficult to lay away when on should be sleeping instead of reading.
I really love these books they are recognisable in theme and experiences.
In this instalment we find out that Calvin's father does nothing really to stop his sons fantasies he is quite capable to tell a tall tale but he truly loves his kid even if he wanted a dog in first instance. Calvin's nemesis is the neighbour girl named Susie who is sometimes too much involved in his shenanigans and hopes each day that a moving truck is parked in front of Calvin's house.
The book is full of fun, adventure and laughter as all previous books difficult to lay away when on should be sleeping instead of reading.
I really love these books they are recognisable in theme and experiences.
January 6, 2022
Oh well! That was quite a fun collection.
October 12, 2023
One of my favorite Calvin and Hobbes books!! I love this so much!
March 9, 2016
I LOVE CALVIN AND HOBBES SO MUCH. <3
May 21, 2018
Calvin and Hobbes were a bedrock of my childhood. I'm estimating I've read each five times but in reality I'd just grab one at random, open at random, and then be lost in the world of Calvinball and Spaceman Spiff, Suzy Derkins and Moe, fantastic snowmen and philosophical walks in the woods with Hobbes.
As a kid who lived in his imagination to escape the many difficulties of an unstable childhood and crippling depths of introversion, Calvin embodied that side of me (though I was actually mild-mannered).
Hobbes' outsider's views on the flaws of human society and our materialistic culture sank deep and gave some justification to my perpetual feelings of being an outsider. If the status quo is flawed, being one step removed gave perspective and freed me from the need to conform. Maybe this is over-analysis and -attribution, but in retrospect I do see some roots of my ability to accept the belief that I was different in Hobbes' musings.
As a kid who lived in his imagination to escape the many difficulties of an unstable childhood and crippling depths of introversion, Calvin embodied that side of me (though I was actually mild-mannered).
Hobbes' outsider's views on the flaws of human society and our materialistic culture sank deep and gave some justification to my perpetual feelings of being an outsider. If the status quo is flawed, being one step removed gave perspective and freed me from the need to conform. Maybe this is over-analysis and -attribution, but in retrospect I do see some roots of my ability to accept the belief that I was different in Hobbes' musings.
April 27, 2021
This was a good collection but compared to the excellent books so far in the series, this one felt quite repetitive with similar gags making a reappearance. I did love the title story though. And the one with Rosalyn the babysitter. It's still Calvin and Hobbes, so I can't go below four stars. It's impossible. 😄
October 23, 2017
It just doesn't get much better than Calvin and Hobbes tbqh.
June 20, 2012
Darn it! Can it get even better?
November 1, 2015
some days you just need to read a good old fashioned comic strip
December 23, 2016
Lots of snowmen and Susie! A+
May 16, 2022
I love C and H. Reading this took me back to my youth of reading about Calvin and Hobbes and their loving relationship in the "funnies". I must read more C and H to add more joy to my life.
June 12, 2024
Always a delight
December 7, 2009
Calvin is a hypocritical, imaginative, dim-whitted, self-centered, insensitive, brutish and rambunctious six-year-old. Hobbes is a sarcastic, peace-loving, supportive, somewhat phsychotic stuffed tiger. Together, the two make a whacky, noisy, messy, hilarious, unforgettable pair.
That's alot of meaningless adjectives, among many, to describe two of my favorite characters in the comic strip department. This book especially had me gripped because it contained one of my favorite 'card-board box' stories, which earned it the name 'Scientific Progress Goes "Boink"'. Calvin remodels his old transmogrifier (really all he does is turn it on its side) into a duplicator. He plans to use it to make a clone of himself that will be responsible for doing all the dirty work for him. But the plan backfires, and the duplicate proves to be just as much of a lazy jerk as he is. It creates more duplicates, and each of these gets Calvin in trouble in turn. The funny thing is, by the end, after the crisis is solved, Calvin states "Okay, so we didn't learn a lesson. Sue me." to which Hobbes replies, "'Live and don't learn', that's us!", and though it is no less than what is to be expected of Calvin, it still drives me up the wall.
The other multiple, equally comical strips contained in this volume perfectly illustrate Calvin's ranting hyprocrisy, selfishness, and imagination. And yet there are also a few strips that portray a rare characteristic of his that ever little kid portrays; child innosence.
Of course, that really isn't what we want from him, or atleast not me. He's funnier as a dickhead, and as long as he's funny, who cares how he treats people?
That's alot of meaningless adjectives, among many, to describe two of my favorite characters in the comic strip department. This book especially had me gripped because it contained one of my favorite 'card-board box' stories, which earned it the name 'Scientific Progress Goes "Boink"'. Calvin remodels his old transmogrifier (really all he does is turn it on its side) into a duplicator. He plans to use it to make a clone of himself that will be responsible for doing all the dirty work for him. But the plan backfires, and the duplicate proves to be just as much of a lazy jerk as he is. It creates more duplicates, and each of these gets Calvin in trouble in turn. The funny thing is, by the end, after the crisis is solved, Calvin states "Okay, so we didn't learn a lesson. Sue me." to which Hobbes replies, "'Live and don't learn', that's us!", and though it is no less than what is to be expected of Calvin, it still drives me up the wall.
The other multiple, equally comical strips contained in this volume perfectly illustrate Calvin's ranting hyprocrisy, selfishness, and imagination. And yet there are also a few strips that portray a rare characteristic of his that ever little kid portrays; child innosence.
Of course, that really isn't what we want from him, or atleast not me. He's funnier as a dickhead, and as long as he's funny, who cares how he treats people?
June 11, 2019
Classic Calvin & Hobbes, managing to be both funny and touching, often in the same strip! It’s always difficult to pick out the ‘best bits’ of one of these collections and so I’ll just say that the Christmas poem is perhaps one of the most beautiful seasonal things I’ve ever read. Wonderful, amusing and heart-warming, I love Calvin & Hobbes!
2019 update - Originally published in 1991 (there’s no dating for the strips themselves but Hobbes mentions at one point going into a new decade, so I assume 1989 into 1990), this is another excellent collection of Calvin & Hobbes with a mixture of panels and the Sunday full pages. There’s a great deal to like and my highlights included dealing with bullies when Moe steals Calvin’s truck, misadventures with Rosalyn, Calvin wishing he had more friends, Dad’s wisdom and wind-ups (colour pictures, Christmas trees and the theory of relativity) and telling the lovely bedtime story, gravity reversal, spider pie, the duplicator (made from the old transmogrifier), in the snow, bullied into baseball and, of course, the joys of Calvinball, as well as the wonderfully touching Christmas Eve poem and stopping Dad working to have a family aftermoon in the snow. Funny, occasionally melancholic, often unexpectedly moving and, above all else, beautifully observed, this is an excellent read that I highly recommend.
2019 update - Originally published in 1991 (there’s no dating for the strips themselves but Hobbes mentions at one point going into a new decade, so I assume 1989 into 1990), this is another excellent collection of Calvin & Hobbes with a mixture of panels and the Sunday full pages. There’s a great deal to like and my highlights included dealing with bullies when Moe steals Calvin’s truck, misadventures with Rosalyn, Calvin wishing he had more friends, Dad’s wisdom and wind-ups (colour pictures, Christmas trees and the theory of relativity) and telling the lovely bedtime story, gravity reversal, spider pie, the duplicator (made from the old transmogrifier), in the snow, bullied into baseball and, of course, the joys of Calvinball, as well as the wonderfully touching Christmas Eve poem and stopping Dad working to have a family aftermoon in the snow. Funny, occasionally melancholic, often unexpectedly moving and, above all else, beautifully observed, this is an excellent read that I highly recommend.
October 2, 2007
Calvin and Hobbes is always good for a laugh when you're down. But the thing that I love most about Bill Watterson's work is that he has the ability to make you laugh and (in the middle of great big belly laughs) he can "make you go hmmm". Hilarious and thoughtful.
October 13, 2020
It was only 16 or so years ago when my dad came home one day with this book for me to read. I was sceptical at the time, as I had little interest in comics, let alone comics with childish looking characters. But I gave the the book a chance and began to read; and finished the book in a single sitting.
You can not quantify how Calvin and Hobbes enriches a child's life, if you have not read any Calvin and Hobbes, go find a copy. Whether you are an adult or a child, Calvin and Hobbes will bring joy, and prompt deep thinking.
You can not quantify how Calvin and Hobbes enriches a child's life, if you have not read any Calvin and Hobbes, go find a copy. Whether you are an adult or a child, Calvin and Hobbes will bring joy, and prompt deep thinking.
December 3, 2020
A lack of funds can never keep Calvin and Hobbes down for long, especially when their overactive imaginations lead the duo to invent crazy machines, travel through time, and reach into the deepest reaches of space itself! Watterson will have fans young and old thoroughly entranced with another round of hilarious adventures and antics. Who needs money when you can just make the fun - and its numerous consequences - yourself?
September 19, 2022
Another good mix. So either I've been in more of a Calvin and Hobbes mood, or the later books are better than the earlier ones? This one does have my favorite bit, where Calvin's Dad explains that the world used to be in black and white. There is some good philosophy here, some serious bits. And more Calvin versus the Babysitter. Calvin is still a brat though, which is still my least favorite part.
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September 18, 2025Amazing as always. The eponymous story arc sees Calvin multiply himself so there are five copies, and the ensuing hilarity when they try to balance taking turns going to school is great. We get several funny Rosalyn stories, an arc that examines feeling left out because you don’t want to play an organized sport, and a full week long Tracer Bullet tale about the PI trying to figure out how far apart John and Joe were when they left their houses.
January 11, 2022
A collection of C&H comics hasn’t let me down yet, but this one was especially good. I loved neo-cubist Calvin, and I’m wondering to what extent Blake Crouch’s Dark Matter was inspired by the main title story of this book.
September 1, 2022
Continually clever, smart, quirky, random, fun, and funny. The attention to detail in each panel and how Watterson fleshes out each character so well is a true delight to enjoy. These are short comic strips so it's perfect to read in small fun doses and amazed at the variety of scenarios and cheek in everyone, from Calvin, to Hobbes, to Calvin's parents, to the babysitter. Truly think this is up to the level of Peanuts, with a zany twist when talking about a boy, his pet stuffed tiger, and the things that go on in the mind of said boy, and ALL the ways he avoids doing homework or behaving.
February 9, 2025
I audibly laughed so much during this book. The relationship between Calvin and Hobbes made me tear up at parts. It's so sweet how best friends they are and Hobbes is always there for Calvin after he's had a rough day. Them teaming up against ros had me HOLLERING it was so goofy
January 24, 2020
you can do anything with your imagination.
August 1, 2024
Leer este libro me llevó a esos domingos de mi infancia, cuando me tiraba en el suelo a leer las tiras cómicas del periódico. Muchas de las tiras que trae este libro las leí en ese momento y hoy regresar a ellas fue de lo más de refrescante.
May 22, 2025
Cool beans!
June 2, 2025
probably one of the funnier ones, and it must have been fun to draw multiple Calvin's.
November 10, 2017
Watterson probably has to be the best funny comic I've read. Probs the best artist and deepest. Incredible pictures of monsters and has great expression. At least tied with Larson.
October 22, 2017
Classic <3
Displaying 1 - 30 of 304 reviews