Comet in Moominland : Can Moomintroll save his beloved valley?

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Summary: The first children's book to address the nuclear age.
Review: Bearing in mind that this book was originally published in 1946, one realizes that the ominous comet that is seemingly destined to destroy Moominland is none other than the atom bomb. Jansson has achieved the feat of calming children's fears about the nuclear age (she may have been the first to tackle the subject in a children's book)---and she has done it delightfully. In this charming, whimsical, and profound story, Moomintroll and Sniff journey to an Observatory somewhere in the Lonely Mountains to find out if the great comet that Moomin has seen will really come to destroy the Earth on October 7th at 8:42 pm (or possibly four seconds later). On their journey they meet up with the solitary traveler Snufkin, the Snork, and the lovely Snork Maiden (soon to become the love of Moomintroll's life), the Hemulen, and other fascinating creatures. The bleak reality of the comet is in stark contrast with, and ultimately powerless against, the loving relationships of the characters themselves. Highly recommended, perhaps the best of the Moomin books to start with for those new to Jansson's work. There is hardly a modern problem or anxiety that Jansson does not address, in her childlike wisdom, somewhere in her books. A major overlooked children's writer in this country (though quite popular in Scandinavia and, interestingly, Japan).

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Summary: Well, this is a pleasant surprise!
Review: I didn't expect this to be available in English, for some reason, but rarely have I been happier to be wrong. If you favour the existence of good children's literature, you owe it to yourself to get all the Moomintroll books. Sure, you yourself might not get that much out of them, but if you have children, it is your absolute duty as a parent to give them these books. It's what you give them to read now that will determine whether they grow up to love literature, after all - are you going to let the likes of Animorphs and Goosebumps dictate their future tastes, with their assembly-line banality, hideous nature, and utter lack of any aesthetic qualities whatsoever? I didn't think so.

A key aspect of Tove Jansson's world is that there is no conflict in it, as such. There's plenty of danger and risk, as much as the adventurous exploits of the Moomintroll would require, but there are no villains, no good-versus-evil struggle, no battle to save the world that has to be hidden from the grownups for some bizarre reason. Some of the Moomintroll books are more pastoral in nature, featuring the Moomin family just lounging around and talking to each other and various other denizens of the neighbourhood. Others feature struggles, such as this one, but they are struggles of knowledge against blind cosmic forces - Moomintroll is trying to _discover_ and _conquer_ the nature of the comet that threatens his home with destruction. This makes for suspense aplenty, and one may even forget that there are no real antagonists, no one who is willfully malicious. The closest thing to that to be found here is the menacing character of the Groke, who freezes the ground under her feet, but she is viewed with sympathy, as a part of nature as well. Nor is she deliberately malicious; she's cold and frightening by nature.

Then there's Jansson's prose and gift of description. Oh my! It's like a gorgeous watercolour. Just read the bit in the beginning where Moomintroll finds the hidden cave, or the part where Sniff and Moomintroll are travelling downriver - there's an air of adventure and beauty to that that seems to have died a lonely death in children's literature sometime in recent history. The setting is a beautiful, undefiled Nordic paradise, where nature rages unfettered and beauty exists in its balance rather than in its placidity. And how about the weird denizens of Moominland themselves - the Hattifnauts, for instance, who can't talk or do anything other than wander from place to place, hauntingly, in vast herds, exhorted by something in their nature that they cannot articulate? What about the philosophizing Hemuls with their respective passions for collecting things and putting them in order? All of these different characters reflect different aspects of human nature. They are emotionally complex, contemplative, given to reflection. Jansson's realistic (the description even says "Naturalistic," which isn't that far from the truth) dialogue brings them to vibrant life.

Apparently, various corporations have gotten their hands on the rights to Moominland, and are exploiting them for all they're worth. There's a cartoon on this theme in Japan, so I hear. But fortunately, no matter what anyone does, the original books are still right here, in all their lyricism, poetry, wonder, melancholy, and aesthetic perfection.

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Summary: I'm 11 and have read all of tha Moomin books twice.
Review: I'm sad that not too many people my age have read these books but I highly recomend them. I wish Tove Jansson wrote more books because I like reading about the Moomin Family and friends' adventures. I like reading them over, and over, again, because I remember that they were good books. My favorite character is the Snork Maiden because I like how she can change colors. The characters weren't ordinary animals like cats and dogs, but characters that you've never heard of before and want to know more about where they live and what they look like. Sometimes I forget what the book is about and want to read it over again so I can picture the characters more clearly so as to read the next book. I hope more kids and adults will read the Moomin books so that they can get transported into Moominland. And also learn about the wonderful characters and world of the Moomin Family and friends.

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Summary: 2 generations of reading pleasure
Review: My sister and I read the Moomin fantasy stories in the 1960s, when we were children. We STILL share jokes about plot lines today! When my son was 5, I bought them and we read them. We could hardly put them down, and he wanted to read the entire series through again the minute we finished. I hadn't realized how entertaining they were for adults. Maybe it's the wry humor of Finland coming through. While these are chapter books, they do have some absolutely charming illustrations. My son ... prefers them to Harry Potter (which he is hearing aloud again at school). It's best to read them kind of in order, as there is a time line to the books insofar as characters are introduced. Comet in Moominland is the first one, in my opinion, and Moominpappa's Memoirs is last. You can read the others in any order, in between. Moominsummer Madness was a little bit weak, I thought; but the others are just terrific, children's classics! Also great take home messages subtly presented, such as: even orphans can find a family; friends help friends out of jams; people go through moods, and it's OK; people who look scary and behave strangely, can maybe just be misunderstood. I credit these books as major contributors to his outstanding love for reading. The characters are beautifully drawn, diverse and imperfect; while there is a mother, a father, and a son, family structure is not stereotyped; the plot lines keep your attention; and the prose created by the translators is superb. They may be hard to find in libraries but they are WELL WORTH the search (or purchase).

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Summary: A 6-Star book!
Review: Reviewer "angrymofo" summed thes books up beautifully.

I read several of the books from Moominland when i was about 6 or 7. Comet in Mominland was my favorite by far. The very instant i finished reading the last page in this book i would turn to the beginning and start reading it again. I can't remember exactly how many times i read this book! I still have my old, old copy that was given to me when we lived in England. Upon diggin this book out of my "archives" i felt that i had to preserve it as well as i could so that my child could read it. On a whim, i thought i would see if it showed up on Amazon (i had never seen any Moominland books in bookstores). I was overjoyed to discover that they were available in the US. So now my child has his very own, crispy-new copy of Comet in Moominland waiting for him.

Bliss!

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Summary: Memorable for a lifetime
Review: The Moomin books were read to me when I was a child, in the sixties, and were among the first books I loved so much that I had to pick them up and reread them on my own. I've never forgotten them, and I'm so pleased to find them in print. COMET IN MOOMINLAND and MOOMINLAND MIDWINTER had the strongest effect on me, but I adored them all. The Moomins are unique in children's literature.

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Summary: I'm 11 and have read all of tha Moomin books twice.
Review: This book is incredibly funny and silly. Its about a little animal trying to save his valley. It kept me on the edge of my seat.

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Summary: Wonderful treasure to find
Review: This is one of my favorite books! I loved it when I was a child. I now love to read all of Moominbooks to my nine year old daughter. The stories and creatures are very charming and funny!