Comet in Moominland: 80th Anniversary Edition

by Tove Jansson

Hardcover

Published October 23, 2025

About the author

Tove Jansson was born and died in Helsinki, Finland. As a Finnish citizen whose mother tongue was Swedish, she was part of the Swedish-speaking Finns minority. Thus, all her books were originally written in Swedish.

Although known first and foremost as an author, Tove Jansson considered her careers as author and painter to be of equal importance.

Tove Jansson wrote and illustrated her first Moomin book, The Moomins and the Great Flood (1945), during World War II. She said later that the war had depressed her, and she had wanted to write something naive and innocent. Besides the Moomin novels and short stories, Tove Jansson also wrote and illustrated four original and highly popular picture books.

Jansson's Moomin books have been translated into 33 languages.

Reviews

[cornelia · Rating 5 out of 5]

sooo cute !! I found myself laughing and smiling to myself on my commute to and from school :) jag älskar Mumin !

[Chelsea-anne Kennedy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a sweet adventure of Moomintroll and Sniff finding out about the comet. Its magical and shows why Moomins have a place in our hearts. They meet new friends along the way and work together. It has beautiful illustrations that really add to the story. This was just a short sweet lovely read.

[Peter Dixon · Rating 5 out of 5]

The original version of Comet in Moominland was published in 1946 and translated into English 5 years later. The author then revised the text a number of times, the last being in 1968. But, while much of the rest of the world has been reading the '68 text ever since, incredibly it has taken until 2025 to translate the revision into English.

Quite some time has passed since I read Comet in Moominland, so exactly how much the two different editions vary, I cannot say. What I can say is that it is a wonderful read, which I devoured in a day. It contains an adventure involving a long trip away from a beloved home, with a vast array of wonderful creatures, a pipe, song, and a lonely mountain (or two) - not unlike a longer book published in 1937. But this one is a quick read and also contains a cat, a comet, romance, a pen knife, ginger biscuits, coffee and the word "flouncy". I can't recommend it enough.

[Maria Longley · Rating 5 out of 5]

An early story detailing how lots of familiar folk ended up in Moomin Valley. A revised edition with a new translation. Lovely illustrations, lovely story.

Translated from the Swedish by Sarah Death

[Louise · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sooo charming.