Moomin and the Wishing Star

Quintessential Moomin abridged for younger readers and made more enchanting with Tove's artwork reconfigured into picture book form.

Moomins-Those wonderful, cuddly trolls that look like white hippos walking on two legs are featured in board books, picture books as well as novels. This picture book describes Moomintroll’s discovery of a shiny pebble his family thinks might be a fallen star and therefore able to grant a wish. After his sister Snorkmaiden shares her wish for a new tail ring and friend Sniff hopes for a chest of gems, Moomintroll begins to think on whether he should give them their wishes or focus on what he wants. In the end, Moomintroll decides to wish for something that family and friends will all enjoy. Like all the Moomins books I’ve read, kindness and friendship is modeled throughout the story and is couched in brightly illustrated pages and the text is large and easy to read. Great book for just the fun of it or shared during emphasis on kindness towards others. Recommended for ages 2-9.

Never received this book

New Moomins are not written by Tove Jansson. They are modern adaptations for little children. I have purchased all of them too date, not because they are well written but more for the lovely illustrations, nice messages and ties to the original Moomin characters.

Moomin is such an important part of my family life. We talk about these books and characters a lot.

Yet another gem from this series - adapted from the originals for very young readers - and a welcome addition to the collection. This time the themes are desires/wants, kindness and selflessness, told in a dreamy, gentle tale that meanders its way to typically lovely conclusion. As with the other books in this series there's a different dominant colour on each page, so there's a good eye-catching variation as you go through the story. Of course the artwork is beautiful, with starry night skies and the forests, lakes and mountains of Moominvalley wonderfully represented. A bedtime story to treasure.

This is one of my favorite Moomin books for younger kids. It's about how Moomin finds a "fallen star" in a pool, allowing him to make a wish. He considers wishing for a few different things, including gifts for friends and family, but finally settles on wishing for an experience, together with all of his loved ones, rather than anything material. I generally like all things Moomin, but this one resonated especially strongly with me (and my wife and 3- and 6-year old). Strong recommendation, 5/5 stars.

It's such a great gift with such cute illustrations and a lovely meaning behind it. It made a heart warming present for my friend and would recommend this seller (and the books too).