The Summer Book

I read Fair Play last year and adored it so wanted to read more Jansson. This wasn't quite as good for me, but was still really charming. Sophia was a bit obnoxious, but she is a kid, and I loved Grandmother. The little vignettes were sweet and made me want to live on an island off Finland. The one where Sophia is dictating her book was so relatable - my son has been dictating poems to me recently. I'm glad I read this and will continue to read more Jansson.

I read this book for a book club I got in (Laufey's BookClub), and overall I really enjoyed this book. I think I should reread the last couple of chapters since I read them on a ride back home late at night, and I was very tired. My favorite chapters were The Cat and The Tent. It didn't have an overarching plot and loads of description, so I struggled a little bit, but the characters warmed up to me. I see a lot of myself when I was young in Sophia, especially her curiosity. The grandmother had a lot of similar traits to my grandmother, and I can imagine us both having similar conversations like the one's grandmother and Sophia had. I'll definitely share this book with her.

A charming and reserved collection of vignettes wherein very little happens but everyone comes out a bit wiser. I have been a huge fan of Jansson's Moomin series for years and didn't realize until the introduction that this was also written by her (was looking for summer books and, well...). Her voice is very similar to her comics and still a delight, though I feel like something is lost without her illustrations. She has a way of describing the world like a depressed and cerebral child, whichs works amazing when paired with the silly Moomin designs but here just creates a sense of absence. In a way it's fitting for the themes of death, growing old, bodies wearing down, but feels more an accident of form than an intentional tone.

Was not quite the carefree summer getaway I was looking for, but I'm beginning to notice that most media centered around summer is almost by necessity a meditation on the passage of time and the implacable sadness that follows.