Have you ever heard of Moomintroll? I admit that I had never heard of them or their creator, Tove Jannson until I worked at the Ballard Library. I'm not sure if it's the fading Scandinavian heritage or just the quirky reading habits of west coasters, but people were appalled that I, a Children's Librarian had never heard of Moomin.
In this recently translated edition of Moomin, Mymble and Little My; Moomintroll is taking milk back home to his mother, when he meets The Mymble who is searching for her missing sister Little My. Does it sound really strange? Well it is (delightfully) strange. You'll be planning your next vacation to Moominworld in no time.
First published in 1952 in Swedish, Moomin, Mymble and Little My is the first Moomin picture book by Finnish author Tove Jansson.
P.S. Turns out my friend Nick's all time favorite book is also by Tove Jansson. Check out The Summer Book for a not so strange book about a relationship between a grandmother and granddaughter and the special summer they have together exploring life, nature and the meaning of love.
Square Fish, a division of Macmillan Children's Publishers is launching the reprints of all 8 of the original Moomin series this coming Spring 2010. Books pub in May. We are trying to spread the word about this delightfully different series.