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The Summer Book - Tove Jansson, Thomas Teal, Kathryn Davis
The Summer Book
by: (author) (author) (author)
4.41 135
In The Summer Book Tove Jansson distills the essence of the summer—its sunlight and storms—into twenty-two crystalline vignettes. This brief novel tells the story of Sophia, a six-year-old girl awakening to existence, and Sophia’s grandmother, nearing the end of hers, as they spend the summer on... show more
In The Summer Book Tove Jansson distills the essence of the summer—its sunlight and storms—into twenty-two crystalline vignettes. This brief novel tells the story of Sophia, a six-year-old girl awakening to existence, and Sophia’s grandmother, nearing the end of hers, as they spend the summer on a tiny unspoiled island in the Gulf of Finland. The grandmother is unsentimental and wise, if a little cranky; Sophia is impetuous and volatile, but she tends to her grandmother with the care of a new parent. Together they amble over coastline and forest in easy companionship, build boats from bark, create a miniature Venice, write a fanciful study of local bugs. They discuss things that matter to young and old alike: life, death, the nature of God and of love. “On an island,” thinks the grandmother, “everything is complete.” In The Summer Book, Jansson creates her own complete world, full of the varied joys and sorrows of life. Tove Jansson, whose Moomintroll comic strip and books brought her international acclaim, lived for much of her life on an island like the one described in The Summer Book, and the work can be enjoyed as her closely observed journal of the sounds, sights, and feel of a summer spent in intimate contact with the natural world. The Summer Book is translated from the Swedish by Thomas Teal.
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Format: paperback
ISBN: 9781590172681 (159017268X)
ASIN: 159017268X
Publisher: NYRB Classics
Pages no: 170
Edition language: English
Bookstores:
Community Reviews
Hol
Hol rated it
3.0 The Summer Book by Tove Jansson
I liked this, but didn't love it. Sorry, B.T. Because I write in a completely different style to the one used here I sometimes find books that indulge in a heavy-handed approach to description a little slow. I loved the relationship between the grandmother and Sophia, those were my favourite bits. I...
Gatta ci cova
Gatta ci cova rated it
2.0
“… una pianta la si sposta dove può stare meglio, per una settimana ce la fa a sopravvivere sulla veranda. Se si sta via più a lungo, la si affida a qualcuno che la bagni, e può essere un po’ complicato.Perfino le piante diventano una responsabilità, come tutto quello di cui si ha cura e che non è i...
BrokenTune
BrokenTune rated it
4.5 The Summer Book
A person can find anything if he takes the time, that is, if he can afford to look. And while he’s looking, he’s free, and he finds things he never expected. This book is brilliant. It's the story of 6-year-old Sophia and her grandmother and the summer they spend together on an island - they go exp...
Chris' Fish Place
Chris' Fish Place rated it
5.0
March 2018 Reader’s Group Read. Rhianna Pratchett recently penned a piece for the Guardian about what the Moomins meant to both her and her father, Terry Pratchett. The Moomins are truly magical and wonderous. Jansson’s Moomin books are also about acceptance and love; it is not really funny in the b...
What I Happen to Be Reading At the Moment
What I Happen to Be Reading At the Moment rated it
5.0 The Summer Book
Give me all the Tove Jansson now, please.
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