Finn Family Moomintroll (Moomins, 2)

Based on some mega Moomin fan advice, we read this book first — and it has inspired a complete adoration for all things Tove Jansson in our five-year-old. The compelling blend of fun adventures, family bonds, diverse personalities and seasonal stories match our imaginative but very people-focused kid’s worldview. But this book also has opened up new daydream topics and curiosity about nature. The stories in this book - from a magical hat to a quick family trip on the sea - are exciting and interesting. But beyond that, Jansson’s well-written (even in translation) text offers a kind and nuanced approach to its characters. Even in conflict, the characters find collaborative solutions. When someone’s quirks might be perceived as problematic, the characters instead accept and often embrace difference. I just adore this book, the sweet illustrations sprinkled throughout and the wonderful writing.

When I first talked about this book in elementary school (about a million years ago...ok, 21 years ago), no one seemed to know what I was talking about. Turns out my having lived overseas in the 80s exposed me to a bunch of literature that just now is hitting the American mainstream. This particular book is one of my long time favorites. The characters are a bit absurd, but it's amazing how you don't really notice that as you get to know them better. Jansson is able to weave life lessons and psychology in a brilliantly subtle fashion into the stories. This book isn't about happy endings or the world having to be a certain way; rather, I think it embraces the world the way it is without being pessimistic. I wish I could give this book six stars. Extremely enjoyable, quick read. I'm going to order the entire series right now.

Bought this as a birthday gift for my wife. She loves Tove Jansson's books and this is no exception. She's reading it right now as I type.

I first read Moomin when I was 6 years old. I am now 32 and still own the copy I read as a child. Moreover, I occasionally re-read it to comfort myself, when I want to feel cosy and positive. The Moomin characters are kind and goodhearted, they are adventurous and loyal to their friends. The Moomin family welcomes every guest, friend or neighbour into their home, they accept and embrace everyone oddities and offer every newcomer comfort, cookies, warm milk and a bit of constant adventure. This book has no malice in it, and non of the contemporary commercialism or greed. But it has plenty of what every kid needs: adventure, friendship and good heart. If your kids are anywhere between 5 and 12 you can wholeheartedly entrust them into the hands of the Moomins. This is really the best book one can get as a present.

I'll never forget reading this as a child - it was just grown up enough to challenge me a little, but contained plenty of silly humor and whimsical adventure. I couldn't put it down, took it with me everywhere, and wanted to read it again and again. It was so fun to imagine being in this relaxed household and having such adventures ... the world is presented as sometimes a little scary but basically OK, and the "children" of the family can handle it. Not in an absurd "adults are stupid, kids rule" way, though. This book gets things just right. So when my wife wanted a gift idea ... There is just *something* about it ... you are drawn in to know and care about the characters, whimsical and silly as they are. I couldn't put it down as a child, and it is just as fun reading it now.

Finn Family Moomintroll is one of a series of delightful books by Tove Jansson now available in translation. Distinctly Scandinavian in feel the book is unlike anything I have read in children's literature. The stories focus on the Moominfamily (Moominpapa, Moominmama, and Moomintroll) and their extended family of guests who came to live with them and never left, Sniff, Snuffkin and the Muskrat (the philosopher). They have episodic adventures with their neighbors the Snork and the Snorkmaiden (who look remarkably like the moomins) The Moomintrolls are illustrated to look rather like small hippopotamuses. The author takes an informational tone sometimes offering footnotes on the Moomintroll homes or customs. The chapters are short tales that connect to one another which makes them ideal for reading aloud. (Think of the short chapter adventures of Paddington Bear as an analogy.) All of the fantastical things that occur are portrayed as perfectly normal in Moominland. What is most enticing about the tales are the charming illustrations and the feeling that reading about Moominland creates; it is at once otherworldly and very much in tune with nature. While the adventures are exciting there is never a sense of overwhelming danger, which give the series gentleness. This volume involves the mysterious and potentially threatening Hobgoblin but even his interaction with the residents of Moominland turns out to be surprisingly generous. Smaller children who enjoy fanciful books will like to have these stories read aloud and older children and the adults who read these stories will find humor in the footnotes or the "philosophy" of the Muskrat. These are clearly Scandinavian classics that have not yet reached a wider audience in America.

As a child, I read the Moomin books by Tove Jansson back in the 1950s and was delighted to find they are available through Amazon in excellent and reasonably-priced hardcover editions, with the wonderful illustrations intact. 'Finn Family Moomintroll' was always my favorite and is still, though they are all good. The Moomins are small animals, like pygmy hippos except that they walk on two feet. They live near the sea in Moomin Valley, with various other creatures both real and imaginary, like Sniff, the Muskrat and the Hemulen. What is wonderful about the Moomins is that they are completely accepting of everyone and, indeed, invite anyone who turns up not only to stay with them, but to move in to their ever-expanding household. Various adventures happen to them (in this book mostly arising out of their unwitting acquisition of the Hobgoblin's Hat, which transforms anything that is put into it), but although the author never lapses into sugary sweetness, nothing ever ends unhappily, even for the fearsome Groke. Ms. Jansson's imagination is marvelous in its inventiveness and detail, and the illustrations bring the characters to life visually. For anyone who has children in the 7-11 range, or for adults like me who are old enough to be children again, this book and its companions will bring nothing but happiness.

If you grew up with the Moomintrolls just as I did, you'll probably be just as happy as I was to know that the books are not only available but still in print and you can order brand new unblemished copies. If you didn't grow up with the Moomintroll books, it's never too late to learn to love them or teach the kids in your life to do so. To the uninitiated, it's hard to explain what makes the Moomintrolls so great. Sometimes there are great adventures in their tales but often they are distinguished from other so-called children's literature by the quiet, philosophical bent of much of the text. Either way they're gems not to be missed. (NOTE: when I say "so-called children's literature" it's not because I disdain children's literature but rather that I disdain the idea that it's just for children. A Wrinkle in Time, the Moomintroll books, The Phantom Tollbooth, these are great books and they remain worth reading at any age.)