Ms. Gherman has a head start in the game of selling her latest biography for children. I couldn’t find many other juvenile biographies of Mr. Schulz, nothing as design-friendly as this biography, and Schulz certainly is an engaging subject. As the book lay on my bed for a day, three of my children picked it up and started browsing through it and asking questions: “Is this a good book?” “Would I like it?” “Does it tell where he got the ideas for Charlie Brown and Snoopy?”

Yes, it’s a good book, and yes, most children who are interested in cartooning and art and Peanuts in particular would like it. The book has lots of pictures, and it’s written on an elementary level. Some aspects of Schulz’s life that can be found in a cursory internet search are left out in consideration of the child audience: depression, adultery, loss of faith. The result is not so much sanitized as distilled to focus on the aspects of Schulz’s life that matter to kids: his growing up years, his family, and especially his work and career as a cartoonist. Ms. Gherman does write about Mr. Schulz’s messy divorce and about his childhood insecurities that followed him into adult life, but these negative events and traits come across as endearing elements that made Charles Schulz a deeper, more insightful artist and writer.

Sparky works for an adult audience, too, at least this adult audience of one. The book itself is beautiful and, as indicated by my children’s interest, inviting. Kudos to the designer(s). I don’t really know if Ms. Gherman herself designed and placed the artwork inside the book and the cover and dust cover, but whoever did it was something of an artist herself. The book is quite colorful with text that jumps out at the reader from multi-colored pages and yet never becomes overwhelming and intimidating to the young reader. And still with the text consistently broken up by pictures and cartoons that illustrate the story, there’s lots of information to reward the reader and hold his interest.

Altogether Sparky is a great tribute to a talented man. Charlie Brown’s football-kicking, kite-flying, baseball-pitching, cloud-watching, little red-haired girl watching, adventures have captured the imaginations of several generations of Americans and given us ways to talk about the insecurities and the hopes and desires that we carry inside. And Snoopy the World War I Flying Ace is my hero! It’s fascinating to get a glimpse of the man behind the cartoon characters and to understand a little more of the creative process in his life’s story.