Momo
by Michael Ende
Fantasy, Fiction, Classics, German-Literature, Young-Adult, Middle-Grade
At the edge of the city, in the ruins of an old amphitheatre, there lives a little homelss girl called Momo. Momo has a special talent which she uses to help all her friends who come to visit her. Then one day the sinister men in grey arrive and silently take over the city. Only Momo has the power to resist them, and with the help of Professor Hora and his strange tortoise, Cassiopeia, she travels beyond the boundaries of time to uncover their dark secrets.
Recommendations from Common Sense Media
Age Recommendation: 12+
What Parents Need to Know:
Parents need to know that Momo, a fantasy novel by German author Michael Ende, was originally published in 1973, six years before the author’s most famous book, The Neverending Story (later adapted for the popular 1984 movie of the same name). Momo also is the name of Ende’s central character, a parentless young girl who discovers the evil agenda of the time-stealing gray men. The nonhuman, cigar-smoking gray men chase and threaten Momo and force other children into hardship, but there’s no real violence in the book. A couple of real men drink wine, and one says he drinks too much. Momo is given a doll called Barbiegirl. This 40th-anniversary edition of Momo includes stylized black-and-white illustrations by Marcel Dzama.
Educational Value: 1/5
Momo explains what an amphitheater is and includes calculations of the amounts of minutes in many hours and years.
Positive Messages: 4/5
Momo understands that the true value of time is in spending it with friends and doing what you love.
Positive Role Models: 2/5
Momo shows young friends (and readers) how much more thrilling and rewarding creative play is than material possessions.
Violence & Scariness: 1/5
Momo is chased and menaced by the gray men.
Sex, Romance & Nudity: n/a
n/a
Language: n/a
n/a
Products & Purchases: 1/5
A gray man tries to tempt Momo with material things, including a talking doll called Barbiegirl.
Drinking, Drugs & Smoking: 2/5
Nino owns a pub where wine is served. Nicola admits he drinks too much. The gray men smoke cigars.
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