Scan barcode
kh2912's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
rankkaapina's review against another edition
5.0
I reread this in English, one of the books I loved when I was a kid. Then I read it in Finnish of course. I loved this as an adult too though, which makes me think it's a great book for everyone. Need to read all of them now. Only 3/6 was translated to Finnish so I'm excited to get to unfamiliar ground. Although this book also had things I didn't remember like the American guest Yellowstone Womble...
millie_yule's review
5.0
I enjoyed it a lot as it was very charming and I liked their environmental message!
slipperbunny's review
4.0
I listened this as an audio book and it was great. I fell in love with the cute creatures and the reader was perfect for this book. My favorite character was surprisingly Tomsk.
nealalex's review against another edition
3.0
For an art project, I wanted to know more about the characters I remembered from 70s British TV. This book was first published in the late 60s and of course some things were familiar, such as the main goal being to keep Wimbledon Common tidy. Wombles are usually plump and are very much concerned with food, in fact sometimes fixated.
They’re utilitarian and don’t hesitate to use artificial materials, in particular concrete, when their burrow needs a major renovation. As far as I can remember, in the animated TV series, they completely avoid human beings, but perhaps this was for technical and aesthetic reasons, because in the book they invite a human to eat with them, travel by taxi and tube (London Underground), and even proudly accept an invitation to the royal box at the Wimbledon tennis tournament.
A more recent TV version has tried to make them more diverse, and one thing that stands out now in the book is that the only female characters work in the kitchen and are very much secondary. Socially, the burrow is basically a boarding school, with Great Uncle Bulgaria as the headmaster (“in control” as he says), and Tobermory his deputy. The burrow has a Common Room and the young Wombles fear getting sent to Bulgaria’s room for a dressing down. There’s even class anxiety, with squirrels being “riff-raff” who will “take over a whole burrow” if you “Give them an inch”.
Overall, the book’s enjoyable but, as with the Narnia books for example, you may not want to take on board all of the author’s ways of thinking.
They’re utilitarian and don’t hesitate to use artificial materials, in particular concrete, when their burrow needs a major renovation. As far as I can remember, in the animated TV series, they completely avoid human beings, but perhaps this was for technical and aesthetic reasons, because in the book they invite a human to eat with them, travel by taxi and tube (London Underground), and even proudly accept an invitation to the royal box at the Wimbledon tennis tournament.
A more recent TV version has tried to make them more diverse, and one thing that stands out now in the book is that the only female characters work in the kitchen and are very much secondary. Socially, the burrow is basically a boarding school, with Great Uncle Bulgaria as the headmaster (“in control” as he says), and Tobermory his deputy. The burrow has a Common Room and the young Wombles fear getting sent to Bulgaria’s room for a dressing down. There’s even class anxiety, with squirrels being “riff-raff” who will “take over a whole burrow” if you “Give them an inch”.
Overall, the book’s enjoyable but, as with the Narnia books for example, you may not want to take on board all of the author’s ways of thinking.
keirashepherd's review
5.0
I re-read this book this year as a comfort read and I loved it! The characters are adorable and so sweet- I very much wish they were real!
This book was so ahead of its time and is very clever. If I could only read one book for the rest of my life, it would probably be this one.
This book was so ahead of its time and is very clever. If I could only read one book for the rest of my life, it would probably be this one.
ekayley's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
lighthearted
slow-paced
3.5
. all of the wombles books are my comfort books.
traditionson's review against another edition
5.0
I have always had the tales of the Wombles around me having always lived quite close to Wimbledon Common. I have not had the luck of being able to see them personally. I found the full collection of early tales of the Wombles highly delightful and full of humour. I was utterly unable to put the book down once tales had started and found that I needed to hear to the end of each tale before I could close the book. A wonderous collection of characters that are unique in their own ways and you will become endeared to them. A book everyone needs to read at least once.
happysami's review against another edition
5.0
I'd never read these as a kid, only seen the TV show, but this was very sweet and very nostalgic!
tigerlea's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0