Selma–The Story of a Stellar Spider - Tini Malina - ★★★.½

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AUTHOR: Tini Malina
ILLUSTRATOR: Tammi Reichel
GENRE: Children's Picture Book
PUBLICATION DATE: March 24, 2026
RATING: 3.5 stars.


In a Nutshell: A picture book about a little spider with a creative artistic style. Nice story and quirky illustrations. Would have loved it more with a different ending. The current one came out of nowhere and left me confused about the moral.


Plot Preview:
Selma is a little spider with a huge creative spirit. She makes her webs artistically, no matter how much the other spiders point out that her webs are not functional. Selma wants her artwork to capture the splendour of the universe, but how can a small spider on the ground make something that reaches the stars?


This book was originally published in German in 2025 under the title ‘Selma, du machst das falsch!’ This English translation (plus a Spanish edition as well) is due to be published in March 2026.

Selma is a wonderful character who follows her heart rather than blindly adhering to herd mentality. She doesn't allow negative comments to affect her, but happily follows motivational and helpful suggestions - a good lesson for all of us in selective focussed listening.

Given that Selma creates webs only for art and not to catch flies, it does make one wonder how Selma sustains herself. Perhaps it would be better not to apply too much logic to the proceedings.

I enjoyed most of this picture book. It would have been an easy 4+ star read for me had the final section of the story not veered into an unexpected direction. I didn't see that coming at all, and it somehow diluted the overall impact of the plot. What could have been a practical life lesson suddenly turned into... Well... Can't reveal anything without going into spoilers but let's just say, it wasn't anything practical from this world. (Further clue: The title contains a pun.)

The text was a bit too small to be read digitally, but perhaps the size would be better in the physical copy. The vocabulary is mostly suitable to the age group. There are a couple of difficult words, but none that cannot be explained easily.

The illustrations complement Selma's creative bent of mind. Given that she is an artist, her web illustrations are also like works of art. Every web is an intricate expression of her desire to capture the beauty of nature. The cover is proof of her web-straordinary prowess.

Recommended to children who would love the story of a creative spider. Given how a few kids are afraid of arachnids, perhaps this book will help them see spiders in a different light. Suitable for ages 4-8 years.

3.5 stars. (Rounding down wherever applicable for that ending.)

My thanks to North South Books Inc. for providing the DRC of “Selma–The Story of a Stellar Spider” via NetGalley. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

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