What do you think?
Rate this book
Garfield Fat Cat 3-Pack #25
288 pages, Paperback
Published December 3, 2024
5 people want to read
About the author
Jim Davis
2,359 books634 followersJames Robert "Jim" Davis is an American cartoonist who created the popular comic strip Garfield. Other comics that he has worked on are Tumbleweeds, Gnorm Gnat, Slapstick, and a strip about Mr. Potato Head.
Jim Davis was born in Fairmount, Indiana, near Marion, where he grew up on a small farm with his father James William Davis, mother Anna Catherine (Carter) Davis, brother Dave, and 25 cats. Davis' childhood on a farm parallels the life of his cartoon character Garfield's owner, Jon Arbuckle, who was also raised on a farm with his parents and a brother, Doc Boy. Jon, too, is a cartoonist, and also celebrates his birthday on July 28. Davis attended Ball State University. While attending Ball State, he became a member of the Theta Xi fraternity. He earned the dubious honor of earning one of the lowest cumulative grade point averages in the history of the university, an honor incidentally shared with Late Show host David Letterman.
Davis as of 2007 resides in Muncie, Indiana, where he and his staff produce Garfield under his company, Paws, Inc., begun in 1981. He was married to Carolyn, a singer and elementary teacher whom he met while both were attending college, and has a son named James with her. However, the couple divorced, and Davis since 2000 has been married to Jill, Paws' senior vice president of licensing, who has worked there approximately 25 years.
Ironically, Davis did not own cats when he started Garfield because of Carolyn's allergies, but they owned a Labrador retriever named Molly. With Jill, the family has expanded to include children Ashley and Chris; three grandchildren, Chloe, Carly and Cody; cats, Spunky and Nermal; and a dog, Pooky.
Jim Davis was born in Fairmount, Indiana, near Marion, where he grew up on a small farm with his father James William Davis, mother Anna Catherine (Carter) Davis, brother Dave, and 25 cats. Davis' childhood on a farm parallels the life of his cartoon character Garfield's owner, Jon Arbuckle, who was also raised on a farm with his parents and a brother, Doc Boy. Jon, too, is a cartoonist, and also celebrates his birthday on July 28. Davis attended Ball State University. While attending Ball State, he became a member of the Theta Xi fraternity. He earned the dubious honor of earning one of the lowest cumulative grade point averages in the history of the university, an honor incidentally shared with Late Show host David Letterman.
Davis as of 2007 resides in Muncie, Indiana, where he and his staff produce Garfield under his company, Paws, Inc., begun in 1981. He was married to Carolyn, a singer and elementary teacher whom he met while both were attending college, and has a son named James with her. However, the couple divorced, and Davis since 2000 has been married to Jill, Paws' senior vice president of licensing, who has worked there approximately 25 years.
Ironically, Davis did not own cats when he started Garfield because of Carolyn's allergies, but they owned a Labrador retriever named Molly. With Jill, the family has expanded to include children Ashley and Chris; three grandchildren, Chloe, Carly and Cody; cats, Spunky and Nermal; and a dog, Pooky.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
January 25, 2025
Though a little far from Davis's comedic 90s to early 2000s peak, the comics contained within this book are still bound to put a smile on anyone's face. The reappearance of Arlene and the promotion of Liz to main cast both come as a welcome surprise, but I do have to ask: where is Jon's family? It seems his farm living, slightly backwards family is only briefly referenced through phonecalls and Christmas gifts. The change of scenery and subject matter was always a breath of fresh air in a sometimes repetitive format, and seemed to connect Jim back to his rural Indiana roots. Hopefully we will see more of Jon's family in the future.
As mentioned before Liz's integration into the lives of the Big Three has been handled well, but I do miss the motif of Jon's tragic dating life. Though I agree with the creative choices to have hima and Liz enter into a relationship after nearly 3 decades of romantic pursuit on Jon's part, the comics featuring Jon trying and failing to talk with girls were some of my favorite moments. Still, the interplay of Jon and Garfield's odd couple 'bachelor' relationship still shines through, perhaps even brighter with Liz's frequent commentary on their slightly 'goofy' lifestyle.
I like the current stylistic choices Jim is making with the characters better than the over simplified designs we saw in the late 2010s. The characters here are drawn softer and more expressive. An interesting note is that the Garfield art team seems to be taking greater creative liberties, with comics published even within the same week showing slightly different features on each character, with Jon in particular showing the greatest variety. Though this is likely due to Jim Davis getting older and giving more creative control to his underlings, it is still nice to see these permutations within a strip notorious for repetitiveness.
Overall I think Garfield comics will continue to be solid into the future. It's a simple formula that's been successful for 40+ years, and may well last another 40. Long live Garfield
As mentioned before Liz's integration into the lives of the Big Three has been handled well, but I do miss the motif of Jon's tragic dating life. Though I agree with the creative choices to have hima and Liz enter into a relationship after nearly 3 decades of romantic pursuit on Jon's part, the comics featuring Jon trying and failing to talk with girls were some of my favorite moments. Still, the interplay of Jon and Garfield's odd couple 'bachelor' relationship still shines through, perhaps even brighter with Liz's frequent commentary on their slightly 'goofy' lifestyle.
I like the current stylistic choices Jim is making with the characters better than the over simplified designs we saw in the late 2010s. The characters here are drawn softer and more expressive. An interesting note is that the Garfield art team seems to be taking greater creative liberties, with comics published even within the same week showing slightly different features on each character, with Jon in particular showing the greatest variety. Though this is likely due to Jim Davis getting older and giving more creative control to his underlings, it is still nice to see these permutations within a strip notorious for repetitiveness.
Overall I think Garfield comics will continue to be solid into the future. It's a simple formula that's been successful for 40+ years, and may well last another 40. Long live Garfield
April 29, 2025
Never bored with Garfield
May 12, 2025
I forgot how hilarious Garfield and co. are. What a fun and relaxing read. Looking forward to catching up on the rest of the series!
Want to read
August 4, 2025SM
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews