Additional information
by René Goscinny (Author), Albert Uderzo (Author)
Three newly-translated classic Asterix stories in one volume! Asterix is a fearless Gaul with a magic potion that grants him incredible strength to protect his village and ward off Roman Empire from invading. With his pal, Obelix, the defend their village from not only the blundering Roman legionairies, but also lend their services to the rest of the world.
Contains 3 newly-translated classic Asterix tales. First, in "Asterix and the Actress," Asterix and Obelix celebrate their birthday as Caesar makes his move against his political rival Pompey, the festivities and fisticuffs are sure to be entertaining!Then in "Asterix and the Class Act," 14 short stories including the day Asterix and Obelix were born (in the middle of a village fish fight), How Obelix goes back to school, Fashion in Ancient Gaul, How Dogmatix helps the village cockerel win a duel, and how he is adopted as a Roman mascot, and the story of the creation of Asterix.
Then, the Gauls have only one fear: that the sky may fall on their head. It looks as if their time's come at last for Asterix, Obelix and the other villagers. But some surprising new characters fall along with the sky. Our friends soon find themselves in the middle of a space race.
Plus: a new Afterword by Alexander Simmons providing historical and cultural context for Asterix, both in 50 B.C. and in the time the classic comics were made.
Author Biography
Rene Goscinny was born in Paris in 1926. After growing up in Argentina, he came to America where he shared a studio with future Mad magazine co-founder Harvey Kurtzman and collaborators Will Elder and Jack Davis. In 1959, he founded the magazine Pilote which premiered what was to become the most successful comic series anywhere: Asterix. He died suddenly cardiac arrest in 1977 at the age of 51.
Albert Uderzo was born in France 1927 to Italian Immigrants. In 1959 Goscinny and Uderzo became editor and artistic director (respectively) of Pilote magazine. Their creation, Asterix became a runaway success. After Goscinny's death in 1977, 26 volumes of Asterix were complete, Uderzo continued to write and illustrate the Asterix books on his own, publishing 8 volumes. The cover credits still read "Goscinny and Uderzo." He retired in 2011 but still oversees Asterix and the current publications by Jean-Yves Ferri and Didier Conrad.
