(+++) FAT CAT SPAT: SPLAT!

The Garfield Movie: The Junior Novelization. Adapted by David Lewman. Random House. $7.99.

The Garfield Movie: Living the Dream. By Nicole Johnson. Random House. $5.99.

The Garfield Movie Official Activity Book. Golden Books. $7.99.

     It is hard to imagine a more unlikely adventure hero than the fat, lazy, cynical, Monday-hating, lasagna-obsessed feline who has graced (graced?) the world of comic-strip syndication since 1978 – and has actually been around (initially as a supporting character) since 1976. Yet now we have it, or him: Garfield, complete with smirk (which makes sense), helpfulness (which doesn’t), and family (which really doesn’t). Ah well, the exigencies of moviemaking in the 21^st century require that certain i’s be dotted, t’s be crossed, boxes be checked, and expectations be fulfilled – and there is no way, short of an underground comic (which Jim Davis’ creation emphatically is not), to build a film around Garfield without changing him, as The Garfield Movie does, into some sort of anti-Garfield character that runs, jumps, helps others, works with Odie instead of perpetually tormenting him, and most of all wants nothing more than a reunion with his estranged father, Vic.

     The Garfield Movie may be nonsense, but it is no more nonsensical than many other contemporary animated features, and kids who are young enough not to have seen Garfield in newspapers – heck, young enough not to know what newspapers are – will have fun with the screenplay by Paul A. Kaplan, Mark Torgove and David Reynolds, which hits all the appropriate clichés (several of them repeatedly) and lurches insistently toward a thoroughly unbelievable feel-good ending that will make very young moviegoers feel, well, good.

     For kids ages 6-9 who see the movie – probably the oldest age group that will be able to enjoy it – there is a perfectly fine way to relive the ins and outs again and again: The Junior Novelization, which follows the plot from start to finish, not omitting such niceties as Garfield singing a dairy-based jingle to an old bull who was once the dairy’s mascot, the threatening appearance of a pair of street-tough dogs named Roland and Nolan, and the ultimate baddie-of-the-moment, a fluffy cat named Jinx who demands 1,675 quarts of milk (that would be 1,585 liters, if anyone cares) because – well, because she is bad. The accuracy of this novelization is actually its biggest weakness, since ridiculous scenes that go by quickly on screen and can therefore be enjoyed or at least accepted at face value require more explanation and therefore more attention in book form – which is not to those scenes’ benefit. Nevertheless, for kids in the right age range and the right frame of mind, The Junior Novelization makes a perfectly fine souvenir of the film.

     Realistically, though, The Garfield Movie is more likely to appeal to even younger children – say, ages 3-7. And wouldn’t you know it, those kids have ways to relive the movie, too! At least two ways, in fact! Living the Dream is a 32-page overview and summation of the film, with every page featuring visuals from the screen supported by only a minimal amount of text. For pre-readers and just-learning-to-read-readers, the book will bring back whatever fond memories of the film they may have – although it omits some elements of the plot, such as Jinx eventually getting her comeuppance. But thinking of this too as a souvenir item, aimed at moviegoers young enough to enjoy the film’s hijinks (and, heck, lowjinks), Living the Dream works well. And for kids in the same age range who would enjoy something a bit more participatory, there is the Official Activity Book, which includes find-the-words puzzles, mazes, matching games, and a doorknob sign featuring Garfield and, on one side, the words “I’m back, baby!” Oh – and the other side of that sign says “I need a nap.” There are draw-Garfield and draw-Odie pages, a coin-toss game, even an assemble-it-yourself poster. And right in the middle of the Official Activity Book are self-adhesive stickers – oodles of them, 56 in all (but who’s counting?). Kids who can’t wait to adorn pretty much any surface with stickers of pizza, baby Garfield, grown-up Garfield, Vic, Odie, the word “Garfield,” the word “Cattitude,” sandwiches, the word “Purrfect,” and suchlike expressions will have a great time with these stickers, which (parents, please note!) are more easily removable from some surfaces than from others. You have been duly warned. In fact, parents have been, or should have been, warned before taking kids to The Garfield Movie – so as not to expect it to have much to do with the long-running comic strip at all, but to be an entry point, perhaps, for a whole new generation to begin enjoying a whole new angle on Garfield as the half-century anniversary of his debut approaches.