Garfield Shovels It In - Jim Davis

Genre: Humor / Animal

Year Published: 2007

Year Read: 2012

Series: Garfield #51

 

 

 

For all my life, I have been a huge “Garfield” fan!  I have read all the “Garfield” comics when they first appeared in the Sunday Newspapers and I have even watched the 80s cartoon, “Garfield and Friends” when I was little.

 

Now, I have read the fifty-first book from the classic “Garfield” comics called “Garfield Shovels It In” by comic legend Jim Davis and this collection of fantastic comics will surely be an instant treat for “Garfield” fans everywhere!

 

Basically, this book just collects various comic strips of “Garfield” during the 2000s and it details the crazy adventures that Garfield, Jon and Odie all have together, including Jon’s relationship with Liz the veterinarian, Garfield continuously torturing the spiders at his home and Garfield making sarcastic remarks about Jon’s lifestyle.

 

Where do I begin with this book? Well for starters, Jim Davis’ writing has always been top notch whenever it came writing “Garfield” comics for the jokes in these comics are always so hilarious and clever, especially Garfield’s sarcastic remarks towards Jon’s eccentric lifestyle.  Here are some of my favorite quotes from this collection:

 

1)  Garfield: (Sees a cricket in the house) “Cricket in the house!  Crick—“

 

Jon: (Is sleeping in the chair).

 

Garfield: (talking to the cricket) I’ll give you a dollar to jump into Jon’s mouth.”

 

 

2)  Jon: (Is deeply thinking about something).

 

Garfield: “Jon is in deep thought.”

 

Jon: “How come you can’t taste your tongue?”

 

Garfield: “Relatively speaking.”

 

 

3)  Spider: (Starts coming down towards Garfield) “I’m not touching you…I’m not touching you…”

 

Garfield: “You’re new here, aren’t you?”

 

 

4)  Jon: (Is sitting by the cookie jar)

 

Garfield: BURP!

 

Jon: “Garfield!”

 

Garfield: “Nobody here but us crumbs.”

 

I just loved the way that Jim Davis is still able to make Garfield into such a likable character, despite the fact that he makes fun of both Jon and Odie whenever he gets the chance to.  I especially loved the sarcastic remarks that Garfield makes towards Jon’s lifestyle as it is hilarious without being offensive and I am always laughing so much whenever I read his little remarks towards Jon.  To be honest, Garfield sort of reminds me of a “orange cat” version of Daria from the TV series “Daria” since the main character Daria is always making sarcastic remarks about the people in her life and whenever I read the “Garfield” comics, I always thought that Garfield was the only character in that world who seems to get what is really going on whenever weird situations with Jon and Odie pop up.  I also loved the fact that in this collection, Jim Davis is able to explore Jon and Liz’s relationship even further.  After years of seeing Jon never catching a break whenever it came to dating, here is finally a woman who can deal with Jon’s eccentric ways, which I think is really sweet and I really liked the character Liz and I hope that we see her in more “Garfield” comics in the future!  Jim Davis’ artwork is as hilarious and creative as ever as Garfield is a cat that is orange and fat, which is a look that has clearly defined the beloved comic character we all know and love!  I also love how all the characters in this collection have large eyes that cover their heads as it makes them look so hilarious and I also loved the appearance of Jon as he is always wearing a blue shirt and black pants, which has become his signature appearance over the years.

 

Overall, “Garfield Shovels It In” is another impressive collection of “Garfield” comics that will have fans rolling around laughing for many years and it is also the perfect collection that both kids and adults will enjoy for years to come.  I would recommend this collection to children ages five and up since there is nothing inappropriate in this book unless younger children might not understand the sarcastic humor.

 

Review is also on: Rabbit Ears Book Blog