February 13, 2026
To get me in the right cutesy mole-minded-mindset to review this book, I decided to look up “moles” on the internet. Reader, do not type “moles” without adding "animal" into your search engine. You won’t like it. What you will like is Pippo’s Perfectly Peculiar Days.
Pippo has a routine and is shocked when his regular day turns peculiar. His house begins to make strange and spooky noises while he tries to sleep under his adorable quilted blankie in his wee moss bed. Things only get worse for poor Pippo. Tentacled plants start growing from his ceiling and his furniture runs off! What is a schedule-loving mole to do? When Pippo decides to peek out his front door, he falls into a pond. Splash! His tree stump house grew legs, wandered away, and plopped down next to the pond. Eventually, Pippo dries off, gathers himself, forages for berries, and brews a pot of tea. He slowly recovers and writes about his peculiar day. After his experience, he feels more open towards peculiar things happening in the future. This is a delightful story about resilience and being OK with change.
Bits and Pieces: The illustrations in this book were created with watercolor and colored pencils, then scanned, adjusted, and finalized in Photoshop. I’m a Lenny fan from Wolfgang in the Meadow and the Fairy Door Diaries. Check both out if you like her style. This book is a cute example of how plans go awry and how that can make you nervous. Pippo has, in my mind, a pretty terrible day, but he doesn’t let it ruin his mood, and indeed, he settles right back into his routine.
Not Sure About: Perhaps I do not have the resilience of a mole, but after that day, I’d be crying.
Favorite Part: Pippo’s pink nose. His berry-themed shawl. His blankie. The words. The art. When Pippo has to use his front door as a raft. The beginning line, “Pippo hummed his jingly, jangly, silly song in his teeny-tiny house on the edge of the wondrous woods.”
