Moomin Book 4

September 1, 2009
Gr 10 Up-Generations of children have enjoyed Janssons books about Moomin and his family and friends. Lesser known were Janssons series of the comic strips for adultsuntil Drawn & Quarterly began reissuing them in 2006. This fourth volume is, alas, the last in the series chronicling the adventures and misadventures of the hippolike Scandinavian troll, his girlfriend, and his parents. In the first of the five stories in this volume, Moominpapa accidentally builds a time machine and takes his family back to the exciting days of the Wild West. To his dismay, he finds a population of peaceful and law-abiding citizens, corrupt lawmen, and Indians who keep forgetting that they are supposed to act like bloodthirsty savages. Another story has the denizens of Moominvalley giving up their peaceful and happy life to join the rat race, while a third showcases the perils of fame and fortune, including a kitchen full of intimidating appliances. As in the previous volumes, Jansson pokes gentle fun at human foibles while driving home the message that true happiness lies in being yourself. Teens will be attracted by the simple but expressive black-and-white drawings on yellow pages, and perhaps take to heart the precepts: that which glitters may be just glitter, and some dreams are best left as dreams. Libraries that already own the previous three volumes will want to complete their set, while those that have somehow missed purchasing the series will want to do so now."Sandy Schmitz, Berkeley Public Library, CA"

Copyright 2009 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2009
Tove Jansson believed in the spontaneity that her beloved creations, the Moomins, lived, and producing a daily newspaper strip soon palled. Consigning scripting duties to her brother in 1959, she drew for two more years before bowing out altogether. Four of the five continuities in this collection are collaborations, but the siblings were very simpatico, and the gently wry humor that is Moomins great distinction illuminates everything here. With the writing off her plate, Tove indulged a decorative impulse that shows in the vertical panel borders of The Conscientious Moomins, in which they strive to make something of themselvesfortunately, to no avail. Two other adventures stem from Moominpappas accidental construction of a time machine; the Wild West and the Age of Reason become the time-travelers destinations and satiric targets. Apocalyptic hysteria is ridden firmly into the ground (and back out again) in Moomin and the Comet, while in Toves final solo essay, Moomin and the Golden Tail, Moomin learns the fleeting joys and much more enduring annoyances of celebrity. Jolly good stuff!(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)