Caramel reviews Asterix Omnibus 1 by Rene Goscinny and Albert Uderzo

Today Caramel talks about Asterix Omnibus 1, written by Rene Goscinny and illustrated by Albert Uderzo, the 2011 edition that brings together the very first three adventures of Asterix the Gaul. As usual, Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, you finally discovered our Asterix collection.

Caramel: Yes.

S: And it seems like you have enjoyed reading them.

C: Yes. That’s why I wanted to talk about this one today.

S: Okay, so let us start. What is this book in your paws?

C: This is a collection of three stories about Asterix the Gaul and his friends.

S: Okay, so maybe you can tell us a bit about Asterix.

C: He is a Gaul, living in the Roman times. Apparently his village is the only village in Gaul that is not yet captured by the Romans. And they keep driving the Romans mad by being independent and so on. In these three stories we also get to meet the people from the village. There is Asterix’s best friend Obelix, and there is the village chief, Vitalstatistics, and the village potion maker druid, Getafix.

S: Those are some ridiculous names! I am guessing they are not in the original French. Anyways, continue please.

C: Okay. So Getafix makes a magic potion that makes the person who drinks it very very strong, and that is how the village has been able to defend itself against the Romans. And Obelix is very strong always, because apparently he fell into the potion cauldron when he was a baby. Anyways, the three stories are about them having some fun adventures.

S: So this is supposed to be in the ancient past, right?

C: Yep. So apparently Gaul is a part of Europe which is today split between France, Belgium, and a bunch of other countries. Wikipedia says that Romans conquered most of Gaul by 52 BCE. So according to the Asterix books, though, they did not manage to conquer this one little village.

S: So this is around 50 BCE?

C: Yes, the first sentence is “The year is 50 BC.” But you could also tell probably because Julius Caesar is alive and leading the Romans. And apparently he died in 44 BCE.

S: That makes sense.

S: So this is an omnibus, which, according to our trusted online dictionary, is “a volume containing several novels or other items previously published separately.” So which stories are in this one volume?

C: There are three. The first is called “Asterix the Gaul”. Then there is “Asterix and the Golden Sickle”. And finally “Asterix and the Goths”.

S: According to Wikipedia, these were first published in 1961, 1962, and 1963, respectively. That is a long time ago. Can you tell?

C: Not really. The stories all happen way back in time. And they are just as funny as they would be if they were written today. But I did read that some Asterix stories have issues with race. The way they represent people of African origin would be racist today, so those stories would probably not even be published.

S: That is a very sensitive issue Caramel. I am impressed that you took the time to learn about it and are sharing it with us.

C: At least those issues do not come up in these three stories. I mean, the Goths are pretty mean and sometimes stupid in the third story, and the Wikipedia article says that was because the authors had strong anti-German feelings because it was so soon after World War II. But that would not be racism even though it is still not a nice thing to do, stereotyping people like that.

S: You are right Caramel. Okay, let us move on to a lighter topic. I know my sister used to laugh out loud when reading these; did you find them funny too?

C: Yes. There is a funny thing on each page, and if you actually look carefully at the individual frames, there is a lot of other hilarious stuff happening, too. The characters are all funny themselves too.

S: They are all very caricaturish, actually. Some characters have huge noses, some are round like a ball, and so on. A lot of them have exaggerated features.

C: Yes, and that makes it funny. And the pictures are all very colorful.

S: I am getting the sense that you really enjoyed reading this book.

C: I did.

S: How would you describe it in three to five words?

C: Hilarious, cartoony, and Roman-ful.

S: Come on, those are not words!

C: Okay. Hilarious cartoons full of Romans. That’s five words!

S: Alright, that works. I think this is a good time to wrap up the review. What do you want to tell our readers?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!