Calvin and Hobbes is one of the most beloved comic strips of all time. If you grew up stealing the comics section of the newspaper from your parents to read the hilarious and insightful adventures of Calvin and his stuffed Tiger, make sure to take a look at Amazon’s Black Friday deals for The Complete Calvin and Hobbes. The hardcover, three-volume box set is discounted to only $83.33, which is 63% off its $225 list price. Amazon had this offer a few weeks ago as an early Black Friday deal, but the collection sold out fast. If you missed out, now’s your chance to get this lovely collection for its lowest price all year.
Amazon is also offering a huge discount on the paperback edition of The Complete Calvin and Hobbes that drops the price all the way down to $65.33. This is the lowest price we’ve seen all year for the four-volume paperback set.
We don’t imagine either of these deals will stick around for long. The hardcover collection has sold out within hours at higher deal prices, including for $100 during Amazon’s October Prime Day.
$83.33 (was $225)
The premium hardcover box set features three volumes compiling every single comic strip from Calvin and Hobbes’ run. All told, you’re getting 1,440 pages of comic strips, some in color, others in black-and-white. The included slipcase features one of the illustrations that is most-associated with Calvin and Hobbes.
I’ve owned this box set for years and can attest to its quality. The comic strips are printed on thick art paper, and the bindings have held up well. Fair warning, though: The premium materials make these books quite heavy. With all three books in the slipcase, you’ve got yourself 22 pounds worth of comic strips, so each book weighs roughly 7.3 pounds.
$65.33 (was $160) with coupon
The paperback version of The Complete Calvin and Hobbes is on sale for $65.33. Amazon’s listing shows $67.61, but you can save an extra couple bucks by clicking the coupon on the store page.
The paperback version has 1,456 pages, but the complete run is spread across four volumes instead of three. If you’re buying the collection for a younger reader, this is probably the better option. While the full box set is still a hefty 17.75 pounds, each book is roughly 4.3 pounds. And with over 100 fewer pages per volume, these are easier to hold for kids and adults with smaller hands.
The slipcase features a different, but also well-known, illustration of Calvin and Hobbes dancing merrily.
Budget-friendly Calvin and Hobbes Black Friday Deals
Amazon also has limited-time deals on more budget-friendly paperbacks collecting Calvin and Hobbes comic strips. You can get The Indispensable Calvin and Hobbes for roughly 10 bucks–50% off its normal price–and The Authoritative Calvin and Hobbes for only $7 (was $20). Here’s a list of the best Calvin and Hobbes Black Friday deals beyond the complete collections.
Calvin and Hobbes, at least according to Amazon, is recommended for kids ages 12 and up. Based on the titles of the books above, it makes sense. I read Calvin and Hobbes when I was much younger, and many adult fans probably did as well. It’s not so much the content that is inappropriate for early readers, it’s that much of what makes Calvin and Hobbes so great is its wit. The cleverness and social commentary can fly right past younger readers. I gained a greater appreciation for Calvin and Hobbes when I read it as an adult.
If you’d rather have smaller paperback collections, check out the ongoing Calvin and Hobbes Portable Compendium series. Andrews McMeel Publishing began reprinting the series in this travel-friendly format last year. Each compendium comes with two volumes.
The Calvin and Hobbes Portable Compendium Series
- Set 1 — $19.35 (
$22) - Set 2 — $12.70 (
$22) - Set 3 — $19.79 (
$22) - Set 4 — $20.45 (
$22) | Releases March 4, 2025
Adults who love Calvin and Hobbes should consider picking up Bill Watterson’s latest work, The Mysteries, as the hardcover is only $8 during Amazon’s Black Friday sale. The Mysteries couldn’t be more different from Calvin and Hobbes, but it’s an interesting illustrated fable for adult readers.
For more deals, check out GameSpot’s Black Friday hub, which includes deals on books, video games, movies, Lego, and more.