Merry Christamas, Noksu!

Mikko Kunnas 2015: Hauskaa Joulua, Noksu!

Not your average Christmas. Noksu is sending old slices of cheese as Christmas cards, using bee hives as decoration and many other odd things.

Very cute comic-like book about different types of Christmas traditions. It is written in capital letters so even the early readers can read it themselves.

Albi goes to the dentist

Mikko Kunnas, Markus Majaluoma 2017: Albi käy hammaslääkärissä

Albi want white teeth and goes to the dentist. Tbe problem is that with the white teeth nobody sees him smiling.  Luckily it was only a dream.

There he gets the idea to play dentist with his friends.

Albi is a very popular children's cartoon, if the link works you can watch it at Albi the TV-series at Yle. Albi does not talk.


This is a good book since so many people are afraid of going to the dentist. And the lesson learned: white teeth do not always work. This applies to other things people want: the desired object does not necessarily bring happiness.

Albi has a whale as a patient. 

Taxbear- introduction to taxing

Taxbear chases Nalle to Sweden.

Mikko Kunnas 2014: Verokahu.fi verotuksen alkeet

The taxing authority is also known as taxbear in Finland (in Finnish , Swedish and German to collect debt has the same root as bear. Karhuta)

In this comic book, the taxbear is collecting tax from all the forest animals: bees, hedgehogs, owls. In the cover of the book, the taxbear is chasing another bear to Sweden. The otehr bear resembles Björn Wahlroos, who resently moved his residence to Sweden, because the taxing in Finland is too high.

Hedghog is either complaining about the weather or high taxes.

The strips are cute, my personal favourites can be seen in the images. The grumpy hedgehog, whose swearing has been sensored and the Taxbear wonders if the hedgehog was commenting the weather or making a complain for the taxes.

In the other strip, the Taxbear gets a visit from an EU collegue, who happens to be an elephant. The elephant wants to tax Taxbear.

Collegue from EU is paying a visit.

We Finns love our taxes. It seems to me that patrionism here is count by, how much taxes you pay.  It is very different from the American patriotism. But these high taxes cover the schools and health care.

I personally admire the creativity ogf the tax authority: there is nothing you can do that cannot be taxed. Besides the tax authority has made paying the taxes real simple: you can do your taxes on the internet. How wonderful!

Noksu

Noksu kulkee ja keksii -cover

Mikko Kunnas: Noksu kulkee ja keksii 2013

Noksu riding a tractor

A platypus named Noksu and his bee friend Nuppi have eaten all their strawberry jam. They want more and know that Maikki the Beaver has cupboards full of strawberry jam. Off they go.

The journey almost ends before it even starts, when their bike gets a flat tire. After this there is several other pumps in the road. The resourceful Noksu finds away and in every spread the travelers get to ride with a different vehicle: bike, racecar, train, airplane, motorcycle, tractor and a canoe.


In Noksu’s bag is a solution for all troubles. Maikki is waiting for them with pancakes. Noksu and Nuppi take a hot air balloon back home, but they have too much jam. This book introduces the smallest readers to different vehicles and how ingenuity and helpfulness smooth the way.
There are other Noksu books drawn with this comic stylel:
Jopas sattui, Noksu
Noksu auttaa
Noksu ja päivän sää

Noksu as seen in Pikku Kakkonen

Heidi Laine: Noksu ja ystävät 2012
Based on characters by Mikko Kunnas
This book introduces Noksus friends:

Päivi -known as Maikki in the other book is a beave, Nupi is a bee,  Rouva Kana is hen and Vauveli is her baby, an egg.
Tohtori Oiva  is gorilla, Julli is a goat and Kari is an old crocodile.

Noksu and his friends