Alright, this is the second last book of the Moomin books I’ll be reviewing. Hooray, I hear you say! This one is a collection of short stories about the Moominvalley and its many inhabitants and characters. Some of these stories have been turned into children’s picture books.

This is an easy book to read – text-based with line illustrations and aimed for children 10 year olds and upwards. I’m also getting used to the many characters (I finally met the whomper and fillyjonk here). They all seem to have paws (not hands) and stories seem to have a recurring theme – self-discovery:

• the fillyjonk found her freedom
• the invisible child found her anger
• Moominpappa found happiness and adventure in his daily family routine
• the Moomin family found Christmas!

I enjoyed reading this because I found the characters warm, funny and a little eccentric. The stories have universal themes without being moralistic. Highly recommended especially for your young readers who will enjoy Tove Jansson’s magical world.