A review by juushika
Tales from Moominvalley by Tove Jansson

4.0

Nine stories. Short fiction provides an opportunity to view lesser-seen aspects of characters (Snufkin's hidden depths are always a delight, particularly the view into his relationship with Moomintroll in "The Spring Tune") and build one-off arcs and characters. Most stories have distinct lessons, but the moralizing is lampshaded (as in "Cedric") and has new and mollifying tone: a cynicism that caveats the hopeful endings but also makes them more valuable. The Moomin cast are frequently at odds with social expectation, they're awkward or yearning; but this sense of discontent is different and feels more mature. It makes for stories like "The Fillyjonk Who Believed in Disasters," raw and cathartic and bitter and joyful, which I loved. And while short fiction collections always vary in quality, the bits of tone that don't work for me are contained to a single story rather than compromising an otherwise-strong work, which is an issue I've had in the novels. This is probably my favorite of the Moomin books thus far, which I wouldn't've expected of a short story collection, but I guess it's no surprise that I prefer my whimsy with a side of bitterness/sadness.