Product Description

Tove Jansson's Moomin characters and books are admired the world over. In the United States the series beginning with Finn Family Moomintroll (first published in English in 1945) has accumulated generations of fans. Since Farrar, Straus and Giroux began reissuing the books in 1989, grateful readers old and new have been thrilled to have the stories available again. At last the final installment is being published – oddly, the only book that features none of the Moomin family themselves, though it does take place at their house. There familiar characters converge – Snufkin, the Hemulen, Fillyjonk, and others – seeking out the Moomins' welcoming company, only to find them absent. All remain at the house, all have very different personalities that clash often, but something about their homey cohabitation during the icy winter changes each visitor in a gratifying way. As The Times Literary Supplement put it, Moominvalley in November is "possibly the cleverest of the Moomin books."

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #100157 in Books
• Brand: MPS Books
• Published on: 2003-09-15
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 176 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780374453091
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Review
"[Tove Jansson] is a master."
– The Times Literary Supplement
-- Review

Review

Language Notes
Text: English (translation)
Original Language: Swedish

Customer Reviews

Haunting, compassionate insight into inner landscapes
"November" is both intensely passionate and cold: it focuses on the empty spaces of the Moominfamily, and those who wanted the Moomins to fill the emptiness of their own souls.

The Moominfamily represents happiness, everything that is good about childhood, summers, or functional families: generous, nonjudgmental, forgiving, carefree. Their absence inspires horrific nostalgia (especially if you have read the previous books)-- and indeed the author follows the emotions of the characters as they struggle with their own emotions, personalities, and less-than-perfect relationships with each other. It sounds grueling, but the souls of these characters are described absolutely empathically, touching the heart of the reader like dream music. The story is about greyness, but the experience of reading it was one of the most colourful, memorable and healing experiences of childhood.

The plot idea of people becoming free from their dependence on happiness is utter genius-- it shows great hope for humanity that we finally have somebody expressing this idea more succinctly than our ancient texts. It's also extremely comforting when we're dealing with our own grieving or nostalgia, or with the tough issues of gaining inner freedom.

Tove's treatment in "November" of the concepts of emotion, memory, longing, love, freedom, purpose, relationships, joy, and death are brilliant, haunting, tender... a nourishing story when we find ourselves at an Ending and our inner landscape surprises us with its breadth.

Misfits and yearning
I'm writing this review in early 2004, and this wonderful book is back in print in America; congradulations to the publisher. I always wondered why others in the fine "Moomin" series (originally from Finland, and translated in England) were available while this one was not; but now it is, and I couldn't be more glad. Fans of Tove Jansson's writing will know that she has a fondness for quirky creatures, seasonal moods, and an almost effortless ability to strike profound chords in the reader's inner world through faint suggestions and an economy of words. All this from a writer who is known as a children's author, but these novels could appeal to anyone in grade four on up to adults, so long as the reader is of a quiet, thoughtful turn of mind. In this particular story, the Moomin family (rounded, fuzzy little "trolls") is absent from Moominvalley (see the book "Moominpappa at Sea" to find out where they went). In their absence, an unlikely group of misfits comes looking for them and ends up sharing a month at their house together. All are seeking for something or other, though they do not yet know that the something is within themselves. Moomintroll's practical, taciturn friend Snufkin (well-known from other books) is onhand to help them sort themselves out, and in the end all are transformed by the shared experience. If this sounds like the plot of an inner world rather than an outer one, it is; yet it is amazingly well done through a very down-to-earth, everyday narration, filled with subtle comic touches and good cheer. Jansson's inimitable, cartoony illustrations of her own books add much to the tale while still leaving some to our imaginations. As you may gather, I have a hard time describing this unique book properly; all I can do is to heartily recommend it to any child (or adult) who is a little offbeat and likes some peace and quiet to be alone with their thoughts.

Another Moomin classic
Why is this excellent book out of print when other Moomin books are not? This is one of the most poignant and quiet of Moomin books, like the month it describes. Your Moomin collection is incomplete without it.