By Tok Kai Xue (26A01B)

Before TikTok and doom scrolling became a thing, one of my staple pastimes was flipping through the neon-coloured pages of Geronimo Stilton. I would pluck a book from the endless rows of Popular bookshelves, quietly tuck myself away into a corner, and dive headfirst into another of Geronimo’s spellbinding adventures.  

This fascination (and maybe borderline addiction) towards Geronimo Stilton shaped most of our childhoods – for every morning reading session in school, almost half the student population would pull out a Geronimo Stilton book to read, whether it be tales from the Kingdom of Fantasy or The Journey Through Time. The craze was essentially unstoppable – we all succumbed to it one way or another. 

Perhaps what made the “Geronimo Stilton phase” such a canon event in many of our childhoods would be its ingenious formatting and design. You had the wacky fonts and coloured text, the (highly misleading) mouse puns with words such as “Marvemouse” and “Famouse”, and – most importantly – the diversity of stories the series could tell. 

The Cast

Certainly, one of the key reasons Geronimo Stilton became such an iconic franchise would be because of its characters. Geronimo was the heart of it all – a timid, anxiety-ridden editor of The Rodent’s Gazette who – despite some reluctance – would always end up finding himself in another wacky whirlwind of an adventure.  Beyond that, you had Thea – the cool, suave sister figure, and Trap – the wild and unparalleled comic relief of the series.

I really appreciated how the designs of these characters were charming reflections of their personalities. William Shortpaws, the strict and bossy patriarch of the Stilton family, would always be drawn with a furrowed brow and disapproving expression, his glasses a symbol of his judgemental attitude. 

Bruce Hyena, the young and courageous adventurer would have his chest constantly puffed out, enthusiastically dragging Geronimo to join him on whatever shenanigans he had planned for the day.

Of course, beyond the main family, Geronimo Stilton did a fantastic job at creating a wider cast of characters – each one of them having their own unique charm and whimsy which won many of our hearts. 

The Spinoffs

Needless to say, Geronimo Stilton was ruthless with its spinoffs. Based on its Wikipedia Article, Geronimo Stilton had a total of eleven – eleven! – different spinoffs which branched out from the main series – some of which I have never even heard of, despite being a self-proclaimed Geronimo Stilton connoisseur myself.

Now, allow me to do the honours of listing all of them:

1. The Kingdom of Fantasy
2. Adventure Camp
3. Thea Stilton
4. Thea Stilton Mouseford Academy
5. Thea Stilton and the Treasure Seekers
6. Creepella Von Cacklefur
7. Cavemice
8. Spacemice
9. Heromice
10. Micekings
11. The Journey Through Time

My favourite out of this jaw-dropping list of titles would be The Kingdom of Fantasy. I’ve always adored how this spinoff managed to capture the quintessential brand of magical odysseys. It seems like Elisabetta Dami – the creator of Geronimo Stilton, truly let her imagination run wild.

I was (and still am) enamoured by the amount of effort put into this universe. There is something beautifully indulgent with the sheer absurdity of it all – quests would be given out by a talking frog, prophecies were always conveniently vague, and Queen Blossom, without fail, would always find herself in some sort of trouble. 

This spinoff was dramatic, nonsensical, and utterly over-the-top – everything coming together with an unattainable sense of childlike wonder. It was all incredibly pretty – not in the artistic sense (though that could work too), but in the way everything felt so, so soft and magical. 

One of my fondest memories of this franchise would be getting my hands on the special editions of The Kingdom of Fantasy. The books were extra thick, with the pages rimmed with glittery gold. 

A Treasure Trove of Love: Our Childhood in Mouse-tastical Adventures

Geronimo Stilton did its job beautifully – setting up a world filled with childlike wonder, serving as a start to many of our literary adventures. Even if many of us have outgrown the charming and whimsical illustrations or ridiculously overdone cheese puns, there will always be undeniable joy and nostalgia when it comes to looking back at this series. I will forever be thankful for what Geronimo Stilton has gifted me, and I will always look back on this period of my life with much fondness.

Elisabetta Dami, the brilliant mind behind it all, had remarked – 

And perhaps, in some way, it was the beginning of ours.