Now that the holiday season is here, we can look forward to shows such as How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Santa Claus is Coming to Town, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, and Frosty the Snowman. One of the most popular cartoons is A Charlie Brown Christmas, which was the first animated Peanuts special. It debuted in 1965 and is the second longest-running Christmas special on US television. (Who can forget that weepy little Christmas tree?) Although it may not air for a couple of weeks, A Charlie Brown Christmas is on my mind becuase today would have been Charles Schulz's 85th birthday. Born on November 26, 1922 in Minnesota, Schulz created the Peanuts comic strip. Peanuts first appeared on October 2, 1950, and was a staple in comic pages throughout the world. The last daily strip appeared on January 3, 2000, and the last Sunday strip was published on February 13, 2000, one day after Schultz passed away.

If you're a Charles Schulz or Peanuts fan, you should take a look at Schulz and Peanuts : a biography by David Michaelis, a new book in the Music/Arts/Media department. You will recognize the cover reminiscent of Charlie Brown's shirt: yellow with a brown zigzag. The book will be featured in the New York Times 100 Notable Books of the Year, which will appear in the December 2 book review section. In the meantime, you can read a Library Journal review, summary, or even excerpts from the first chapter by clicking on the links on the left-hand side of the bibliographic record.