December 2020 reading: ★★★★☆ I wanted to read this again after tomte came up in another book I was reading. This time, knowing more about tomte as a Nordic folk figure, I definitely found more pleasure in the story but a little background in the book itself would have helped. Also, I found it strange that the tomte's words are sometimes set differently from the rest of the text and sometimes not- a distracting design issue.

January 2019 reading: ★★★☆☆ The setting and illustrations are charming but what's the point of the story? ( )

In The Tomten, Astrid Lindgren recounts the quiet adventures of a gnome-like mythical creature who lives on a small farm and comes out at night to keep an eye on the family and its farm animals.

I liked this because the Tomten is just kind--no crazy mishaps, no tricksterism and comeuppance, no dialogue (just "tomten language, a silent little language that (the cows, the cats, the children) can understand"), and at the same time none of the opposite kind of thing where instead of a madcap time we get little creatures that go around at night doing chores and making sure the world stays "proper" (I can't help but think of this in terms of a left–right political axis, from upright shoemaker elves to subversive Rumpelstiltskin, or whatever)--no, the Tomten is just kind, and reminds everyone in their sleep that spring will come again, and makes the haunted farm seem safe even while still haunting, just like its blanket of snow. ( )

In The Tomten, Astrid Lindgren recounts the quiet adventures of a gnome-like mythical creature who lives on a small farm and comes out at night to keep an eye on the family and its farm animals. The story itself and its illustrations both have a laid back quality, and I could see this book making a good bedtime story to help the kids unwind before resting. There's a great deal of repetition in the text but not the kind of singsong repeating often seen in children's books. The repetition here instead creates a feeling of familiarity that adds to the book's comforting and cozy atmosphere. The illustrations are somewhat muted, but this also adds to the overall tone. While I wasn't crazy about this book per se, I did appreciate the texture and layers of it and how it's a calmer, quieter read for kids. ( )

In the quiet of a cold and snowy winter night, on a farm "deep in the middle of the woods," a tomten - tomtens (known as nisse in Norway and Denmark) are small, dwarf or gnome-like beings from Scandinavian mythology, said to guard and care for a farm and its inhabitants - makes his rounds, checking on all the animals, and on the human inhabitants as well. From the cows to the sheep, Dobbin the horse to Caro the dog, the tomten speaks to each in his silent tomten language, that only animals and babies can understand, offering consolation, and the promise of spring (and happiness) to come. Pondering his human charges, who (unlike the animals) sleep the night away, and never know he is there, the tomten concludes his rounds, ending up with his feline companion, who demands milk, and his company. Winters may come and summers go, the narrator concludes, but all throughout the year, in the dead of night, the tomten will be there, to ensure that all is well...

Based upon a poem by Viktor Rydberg, published in 1881 in the magazine Ny Illustrerad Tidning, this delightful picture-book from acclaimed Swedish children's author Astrid Lindgren has a gentle charm that slowly and subtly works upon the reader, drawing her into its quiet, comforting world. I liked the repetitive structure of the tale - this probably owes something to the original poem - as it creates a rather soothing rhythm, and emphasizes the reassuring nature of the story itself. The tomten is there - every night he is there - and he is sure to get to all the residents of the farm, during the course of his nightly duties. The accompanying artwork, done in muted tones by Harald Wiberg, has a soft, indistinct quality to it that is ideally suited to the wintry nighttime scene, and perfectly captures the quiet feeling of enchantment to be found in the text.

All in all, The Tomten is a superb little book, and I am quite grateful to the Picture-Book Club to which I belong for choosing it as one of our selections this month. Our theme this time is "mystical/magical creatures," and this surely fits the bill! I will definitely be seeking out a copy of Lindgren's The Tomten and the Fox, as well as the Norwegian story, The Nisse from Timsgaard... ( )