Product Description

A collection of 12 new stories - all linked by the theme of Asterix's anniversary celebration.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #554 in Books
• Published on: 2009-10-22
• Released on: 2009-10-22
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 56 pages

About the Author
Rene Goscinny was born in Paris in 1926, and spent most of his childhood in Argentina, before eventually moving to Paris in 1951. He died in 1977. Albert Uderzo was born in 1927 in a small village in Marne, France. He met Rene Goscinny in 1951 and on 29 October 1959 their most famous creation, Asterix, made his first appearance on page 20 of PILOTE. ASTERIX THE GAUL their first album, was published in 1961 and there have now been 33 Asterix albums. Rene Goscinny was born in Paris in 1926, and spent most of his childhood in Argentina, before eventually moving to Paris in 1951. He died in 1977.

Customer Reviews

Some people are so difficult to please!
Ignore the carping: this is great fun. I agree that if you have never read an Asterix book before, this may not be the one to start on, but to the dedicated fan there is lots to enjoy here. Old characters reappear, scenes from old adventures bring back warm memories and the new stuff is a hoot. I particularly liked a section speculating on what would happen if everyone really did age fifty years instead of keeping their youthful looks and another with Cacofonix hosting an Andrew Lloyd-Webber-style reality show for aspiring bards.

Of course it's slightly self-indulgent but if you can't be self-indulgent on your birthday...

When material is cosily familiar, it's invigorating to do new things with it and here Uderzo manages with great style.

Insult to a classic series, done for the money
Having been a very long time fan of Asterix and his Gaulish chums, I was excited to see a new book published. I was a little concerned as Goscinny is no longer alive, but figured that his family wouldn't allow anything substandard to be published.

Was I ever wrong! This blatant cash-in is very poor and contains none of the classic humour and cleverness of the originals. Uderzo's drawings are as good as ever, but as a significant amount of this book is simply snaps from old Asterix books, and a large amount of the rest are (mostly poor and/or obscure) parodies of paintings, album covers and the like, Uderzo's new drawings don't really feature much.

There is no story at all, just a weakly wandering collection of suggestions of what the other characters in the stories might do to celebrate Asterix and Obelix's 50th birthday. There is no continuity between the collection, and little humour either.

If you haven't got all the original Asterix books, use your money to buy them instead of this rubbish. If you have all the originals, go and read them again.

Either way, don't waste your money on this book. It will only ruin a great memory.

Easy going fun for fans only.
The plot is simple: the village decides to throw a party for Asterix and Obelix (they both share the same birthday) and various ideas as how to honour them are put forward by the villagers, making the wafer thin story an excuse for a silly indulgence for everybody who loves the Asterix series. Characters from past stories re-appear to join in the fun as the celebration pokes gentle fun at Asterix ventures such as the theme park and movies as well as a quick detour into the arts. Julius Caesar makes a quick appearance at the end in an attempt to ruin the celebrations with a laxative wine!

It's a mixed bag: more of a clever idea than an actual story and a rather lazy one at that, but the good natured humour of the series as well as the drawings stand out. It makes a nice change in some respects (I quite like the anarchy of the book) and Asterix and Obelix are pushed into the background, making way for the supporting characters to take the lead and also the proverbial mickey out of our two heroes.

Most of the jokes work, some don't - and you get the feeling that something has been lost in translation - but for a celebration of 50 years of Gaulish knockabout fun, it'll do just fine. Though here's hoping the next outing for Asterix and co. will be a fully fledged return to the traditional storytelling of past adventures.