Pippi Longstocking In The South Seas

Pippi Långstrump #3

by Astrid Lindgren, Mini Grey (Illustrator)

Loved by millions of children around the world Pippi Longstocking is one of the most popular children's characters of all time. This story sees Pippi, Tommy and Annika go on their greatest adventure yet - to Koratuttutt Island, where Pippi's father is king. This new edition contains brand new black and white artwork by award-winning illustrator Mini Grey.

Genres: Childrens, Fiction, Classics, Adventure, Fantasy, Middle Grade, Humor

135 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1948

About the author

Astrid Anna Emilia Lindgren, née Ericsson, (1907 - 2002) was a Swedish children's book author and screenwriter, whose many titles were translated into 85 languages and published in more than 100 countries. She has sold roughly 165 million copies worldwide. Today, she is most remembered for writing the Pippi Longstocking books, as well as the Karlsson-on-the-Roof book series.

Awards:
Hans Christian Andersen Award for Writing (1958)

Reviews

[♡ Sonja Rosa Lisa ♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

4,5 Sterne
Nun habe ich alle drei Pippi Langstrumpf Bücher gelesen und hatte mit allen viel Lesespaß! Ich könnte auch gar nicht sagen, welches der drei Bücher mir besser gefallen hat. Sie sind alle toll!
In diesem Band reisen Pippi, Annika und Tommy in die Südsee. Annika und Tommy waren krank und sollen sich erholen, und Pippi soll doch endlich einmal die Insel sehen, wo ihr Vater König ist.
Wieder lustige und abenteuerliche Abenteuer, die Pippi und ihre Freunde hier erleben. Und Pippi lügt mal wieder, dass sich die Balken biegen, aber man kann ihr einfach nicht böse sein. :)

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pippi Longstocking was the owner of Villekulla Cottage and her friends, Tommy and Annika would visit her daily for fun and entertainment. When Pippi's father arrived on his ship, all the way from Canny Canny Islands where he was king, Pippi and her two friends - with the approval of Tommy and Annika's parents - climbed on board the Hoppetossa and sailed away. The fun they had when they arrived, with exploring secret caves, swimming in the ocean while Pippi kept the sharks at bay, keeping company with the island's children - all would come to an end though, when they sailed back home. But would they make it in time for Christmas?

Pippi Longstocking in the South Seas is the 3rd in Pippi's story by Astrid Lindgren and remembering how much my daughter loved Pippi Longstocking when she was a little girl, and needing a translated fiction read for a challenge, I was happy to take up with Pippi again myself. Pippi is a magical character who is and has been loved by all children over the years - she was created in 1945 when the author was 38 years old, and her daughter was ill with pneumonia. Pippi has seen far reaching popularity since then.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading Pippi is like reading Plato, but better because Socrates didn't have a monkey named Mr. Nilsson. The faux simpleton toys with the stiffs before devastating them with some Five-Point-Palm-Exploding-Heart Technique of logic.

"Now then," she said finally, "will you tell me how you spell 'seasick'?"
"I'll be glad to," said Pippi, "S-e-e-s-i-c-k."
Miss Rosenblom smiled - a sour smile. "Is that so?" she said. "The dictionary spells it differently."
"Then it was very lucky that you wanted to know how I spell it, said Pippi. "S-e-e-s-i-c-k is the way I have always spelled it and it seems to have worked out just fine."

[Manny · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favourite bit is the song "Sjörövar-Fabbe" - though, as Gulla points out below, this isn't actually in the book, only the movie. It's about Pippi's great-grandfather, Fabbe, who despite being a fearsome pirate has a tendency to become seasick any time the waves get a little rough. Most Swedish three year olds can sing the refreshingly simple chorus: "Oj, oj-oj-oj, oj-oj-oj!" If you're curious, you can hear Drängarna singing it on Youtube.

I wondered how difficult it would be to convey to non-Swedish-speakers just what a fine song this is. After a day's thought and experimentation, I have a literal translation, based on the one produced by Google Translate, and a non-literal translation which tries to capture the spirit of the original at the cost of taking great liberties with the text. I feel I have a better understanding of what Nabokov went through when he produced his famous translation of Eugene Onegin: there isn't any satisfactory solution even for a good nursery rhyme, so think how infinitely worse it must be when you're dealing with a book-length literary masterpiece.

Anyway, here are the results of my little exercise. I should add that tjohej hadelittan lej doesn't mean anything at all; it's just a piratey chant put in for onomatopoeic effect. I've followed Vivi's suggestion of replacing this with the phonetic English "Joey had a lit an' lay" in the non-literal translation.

Original text

Sjörövar-Fabbe, farfars far,
är minsann en sjusärdeles karl,
kring alla hav han far och far,
tjohej hadelittan lej.
Sjörövaryrket passar´n bra;
"De är bara att röva och ta,
och de", sa Fabbe, "gillar ja",
tjohej hadelittan lej.

Men då...
vad står på?
Fabbe blir plötsligt blek och grå!
Oj då!
Vad står på,
oj oj oj oj oj oj oj!
(Oj oj oj oj oj oj oj!)
Sjörövar-Fabbe, farfars far,
är minsann en sjusärdeles karl,
men han är sjösjuk alla da´r,
tjohej hadelittan lej.

Stormen ryter och åskan går,
havet brusar och seglena slår,
ner i kajutan Fabbe går,
tjohej hadelittan lej.
Kräks och svär och mår inte bra.
"Bättre väder det vill jag nog ha,
annars", sa Fabbe, "slutar jag",
tjohej hadelittan lej.

Men då...
vad står på?
Fabbe blir plötsligt blek och grå!
Oj då!
Vad står på,
oj oj oj oj oj oj oj!
"D´ä nåt ingen mänska förstår,
varför alltid så illa jag mår,
bara båten guppar och går,
tjohej hadelittan lej."

Sjörövar-Fabbe, farfars far,
är minsann en sjusärdeles karl,
men han är sjösjuk alla da´r,
tjohej hadelittan lej.

Literal translation

Pirate-Fabbe, great-grandfather,
is indeed a TERRIFIC man
around all the seas he sails and sails,
tjohej hadelittan lej.
The pirate profession suits him well;
"All you have to do is steal and take,
and that" said Fabbe, "I like",
tjohej hadelittan lej.

But then ...
what's going on?
Fabbe suddenly becomes pale and gray!
Oops!
What's the matter,
ooh ooh ooh ooh ooh ooh ooh!
(Ooh ooh ooh ooh ooh ooh ooh!)
Pirate-Fabbe, great-grandfather,
is indeed a TERRIFIC man
but he is seasick every day,
tjohej hadelittan lej.

The storm roars and lightning strikes,
the sea growls and the sails flap,
down in the cabin goes Fabbe,
tjohej hadelittan lej.
He vomits and swears and does not feel good.
"Better weather, that's what I want,
otherwise", said Fabbe, "I'm quitting"
tjohej hadelittan lej.

But then ...
what's going on?
Fabbe suddenly becomes pale and gray!
Oops!
What's the matter,
ooh ooh ooh ooh ooh ooh ooh!
"It's something no human being will understand,
why I always feel so bad,
just because the boat's bobbing around,
tjohej hadelittan lej."

Pirate-Fabbe, great-grandfather,
is indeed a TERRIFIC man
but he is seasick every day,
tjohej hadelittan lej.

Free translation

Old Pirate Fabbe, grandad's dad
Toughest guy the family ever had
Out on the ocean he's scary and bad
Joey had a lit an' lay.
"Pirate life is perfect for me
Grab people's stuff and push 'em in the sea
That," says Fabbe, "'s what I like to see"
Joey had a lit an' lay.

But... no way!
What didya say?
Why's Fabbe gone all pale and gray?
No way!
What didya say?
oj oj-oj-oj oj-oj-oj!
(Oj oj oj oj oj oj oj!)
Old Pirate Fabbe, grandad's dad
Toughest guy the family ever had
But he gets seasick and that makes him mad
Joey had a lit an' lay.

The wind comes up, now don't dare laugh
Soon as the storm's gone a minute and half
He's in the bathroom, 'cause he's gotta barf
Joey an' a lit an' lay.
Crawls to his bunk, lies down for a bit
Yells at the crew who couldn't give a shit
"Fix that wind or I'm gonna quit!"
Joey had a lit an' lay.

No way!
What didya say?
Why's Fabbe gone all pale and gray?
No way!
What didya say?
oj oj-oj-oj oj-oj-oj!
I don't understand, you'll have to explain
Three puffs of wind and a little spot of rain
He's in the bathroom, barfing again!
Joey had a lit an' lay.

Old Pirate Fabbe, grandad's dad
Toughest guy the family ever had
But he gets seasick and that makes him mad
Joey had a lit an' lay.

[Manybooks · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, if Florence Lamborn were the translator for the third of Astrid Lindgren's Pippi Longstocking novels, I probably would be reading an English language translation of Lindgren's original Swedish Pippi Långstrump I Söderhavet (as I have now read Pippi Longstocking and Pippi Goes on Board translated by Lamborn, have found both novels decently rendered into English, nicely flowingly readable, and that I do with my translations appreciate textual consistency, even though thematically speaking, Astrid Lindgren's Pippi Longstocking tales are not and never have been personal favourites for me). However, since I do in fact tend to much prefer reading Astrid Lindgren in German and not in English translation anyhow and since Pippi in the South Seas seems to have been translated (for the North American market) not by Florence Lamborn but instead by Gerry Bothmer (whose translation of Astrid Lindgren's first Madicken novel, whose Mischievous Meg I absolutely and totally despise with every fibre of my being), yes, and because Pippi in Taka-Tuka-Land (this being the German edition of Pippi Långstrump I Söderhavetis) is fortunately and happily available for borrowing on Open Library, I am most definitely going to be reading the third Pippi Longstocking novel in German (since I as already pointed out above most definitely enjoy Astrid Lindgren in German much more than in English, and that I really do not in any way wish to read another Lindgren story translated by Gerry Bothmer if I can help it).

Now with regard to Pippi in Taka-Tuka-Land as a story, as a novel in and of itself, which like with the second Pippi Longstocking book, which like with Pippi geht an BoardPippi Goes on Board) I did not read as a child, in Germany, although I do vaguely remember having some chapters of Pippi in Taka-Tuka-Land read aloud by our teacher in grade three, albeit that Astrid Lindgren's translated into German by Cäcilie Heinig text, while the presented Pippi Longstocking themed episodes of Pippi in Taka-Tuka-Land have a very readable and sweetly relatable narrative cadence, writing style and always flow smoothly (and with good connections from chapter to chapter), sorry, but Astrid Lindgren's contents and themes for Pippi in Taka-Tuka-Land, they are more than a bit annoying for me as an adult reader (and were indeed mostly also this when I was a young reader in Germany, which is probably why I never did read either or Pippi in Take-Tuka-Land in the mid 1970s when I first started to read and to love Astrid Lindgren as an author (that I basically stopped with the Pippi Longstocking books after reading the first story).

Because yes, while those parts of Pippi in Taka-Tuka-Land where Astrid Lindgren (and by extension translator Cäcilie Heinig) show Pippi Longstocking's (and her friends Tommy and Annika's) adventures and shenanigans in their local Swedish city/town are decently entertaining, and that my inner child certainly adores the first chapter of Pippi in Taka-Tuka-Land where Pippi trounces that arrogant and full of himself blowhard who wants to buy and demolish her treasured villa, her home, and build some new fangled architectural monstrosity (although I do ALWAYS tend to find Pippi Longstocking's super-human strength and that she never fails, that she is always successful rather boring, rather textually dragging and tedious), I really do not AT ALL like Pippi in Taka-Tuka-Land once Pippi, Tommy and Annika travel with Pippi's "Cannibal King" father to Taka-Tuka-Land, to the South Seas and that both my adult self and my inner child find Astrid Lindgren's contents and themes for when and after Pippi and company arrive in the South Seas massively dated, uncomfortable and majorly politically incorrect, (with Pippi's father being the white skinned Cannibal King, how Pippi, Tommy and Annika are depicted by Astrid Lindgren as being friendly what hugely paternalistic and patronising towards the Native populations and how in Pippi in Taka-Tuka-Land ALL of the Take-Tuka-Land inhabitants are shown as speaking very broken and silly sounding German just making me cringe and feel angry, and not to mention that I also cannot accept and understand how Tommy and Annika's parents would have no issues and concerns with sending their two children on a months long journey with Captain Longstocking and daughter Pippi).

And while the ending for Pippi in Take-Tuka-Land is kind of nicely bittersweet and leaves readers with the knowledge that while Tommy and Annika will soon be growing up, but that Pippi Longstocking herself has decided to not want to and try to grow up (and will thus also end up quite lonely as her friends change and mature whilst she does not at all want this), sorry, but even though I have enjoyed the first part of Pippi in Taka-Tuka-Land and the ending, the time textually spent in the South Seas, no indeed, I find this part of Astrid Lindgren's story too dated and too replete with imperialist and stereotypical overtones for me to consider more than a two star rating.

[Annetius · Rating 5 out of 5]

Θα παραπέμψω στην κριτική που κατέθεσα στο πρώτο βιβλίο της Πίπης Φακιδομύτη, την οποία προσυπογράφω με τα χίλια και γι’��υτό το βιβλίο. Καλωσήρθατε στον κόσμο της ανεμελιάς, της ξεγνοιασιάς, της περιπέτειας και των αγνών, καθάριων και χειμαρρωδών αισθημάτων και αισθήσεων που γνωρίσατε –ελπίζω!- ως παιδιά. Μόνο καλό προκαλεί η ανάγνωση τέτοιων βιβλίων.

[Chantal · Rating 2 out of 5]

What I hoped would be a good story to read, was really disappointing. In my memory Pippi was funny and cheeky, in this book she came of as arrogant and smart Aleck. The stories were short and easy to read. Wished it would have been more funny. A shame!

[Eline]

Ik ga geen rating aan dit boek geven, want ik zou niet weten hoe ik dit in hemelsnaam moet beoordelen.

Jemig, dit boek is racistisch. Het is een product van zijn tijd, zullen we maar zeggen, maar ik werd echt nogal onpasselijk bij het kolonialisme en de woordkeuzes en de verhoudingen tussen de witte en de zwarte mensen en eigenlijk vrijwel alles in dit boek. Ik vind Pippi en haar vrienden erg boeiend, maar dit deel had van mij niet zo gehoeven, zullen we maar zeggen

[blueisthenewpink · Rating 2 out of 5]

Továbbra is nagyon zavart a szomszéd gyerekek viselkedése, hogy soha egyszer eszükbe nem jut viszonozni Pippi kedvességét, hogy játékokat talál ki, eteti őket, ajándékokat ad nekik. Ha egyszer mind gyerekek, legalább próbálják már meg viszonozni néha. Csak azért, mert szupererős, szupergazdag, és szuperönzetlen, nem kéne kihasználni. Rettentő ellenszenvesek. Így aztán bármi izgalom és jópofaság történik is, nem tudtam kedvelni ezt a kötetet, örülök, hogy vége lett.

[Ciara · Rating 5 out of 5]

i re-read all the pippi books every year, usually in the spring. just to keep in touch with my inner child, you know. this is the last of the original pippi books, in which pippi, tommy, & annika board captain longstocking's ship, the hoptoad, & set sail for the south seas cannibal island where he is king. hijinks ensue, such as pippi telling off a shark, protecting the island's pearls from robbers, & promising with tommy & annika to never grow up. i like this book, although i am the first to admit that some of the south seas cannibal islanders stuff is racially suspect. astrid lindgren was a lady who was very ahead of her time when it comes to social issues--she campaigned for animal rights up until the day she died & is famous throughout sweden for her radical political stances. but her books were written in the mid-20th century, when white people throughout the world (lindgren is swedish, obvs) weren't necessarily very racially conscious. so i do feel conflicted about that issue, & prefer the first two pippi books as a result. but still. the last chapter of this book always makes me cry.

[Rebeccah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this numerous times as a kid, as I seem to recall it was one of the few children's novels my Grandma had at her house. At least that seemed interesting to me.

I read the original Pippi Longstocking book for the first time just a couple of years ago, and was very disappointed. This installment is a vast improvement. Here Pippi's chaotic energy is put to good use in putting busy-bodies in their place, cheering up sad children, scaring away bandits, and much more. There seems to be a nobler purpose in her zaniness than just being annoying. There is also a touch of melancholy at the end, as the children reflect on the meaning of home and the possibility of growing up.

Loved it as a kid (5 stars), still very enjoyable as an adult (3.5 rounded up).

[Seale Ballenger · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I was seven years old on my first visit to New York and FAO Schwartz, my parents told me that i could pick out one of whatever I wanted. I got this. BOOK NERD!

[Belinda Vlasbaard · Rating 5 out of 5]

4,5 sterren - Nederlandse hardcover

Recensie volgt later.

[Ada Seven · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sonunda internetten Pippi Uzunçorabın 3. kitabını buldum ve hemen sipariş ettim. Geldiği gibi okumaya başladım, bitirmem de çok uzun sürmedi. Hatta tam 1 hafta sürdü. Bu kitabın bölümleri diğer iki kitabından farklı olarak birbiriyle bağımlıydılar. Bağımlı olarak demek istediğim, bütün bölümler Pippi Uzunçorabın ve arkadaşları Tommy ile Annika'nın Büyük Okyanus'ta geçirdiği maceraları anlatıyor. Okurken her zamanki gibi çok güldüm ve eğlendim. Fakat kötü haber şu ki, Pegasus yayınlarında bir sorun olduğu için daha fazla Pippi Uzunçorap üretmiyor :(
Neyse :)
Çok güzel, komik ve eğlenceli bir kitaptı.
Büyük, küçük herkese tavsiye ederim.
Sevgiler: ADA SEVEN✨

[Dana-Adriana B. · Rating 3 out of 5]

O poveste interesanta, distractiva pe alocuri. Pippi este un caracter foarte puternic mi-au placut momentele ei de ironie fata de adultii fuduli.

[Tamara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this aloud to my daughter, after reading the other two Pippi books. She hangs on every word and when one chapter ends, nearly salivates for the next. Each chapter is a nearly self-contained episode, and works quite well for bedtime stories. Inspired by her heroine, she's tried to sleep "upside down" with her feet on the pillow. Amusingly, my son (a bit older) pretends not to care, but hangs just around the corner whenever one of the books opens, clearly listening to all Pippi's adventures too. (Same with the husband, so I have simply moved the "daughter's" story time to the living room!) My family falls into gales of laughter as Pippi spins her tall tales, and Pippi's simple self-assurance is quite refreshing. That said, I preferred the first Pippi Longstocking book. We all craved more and followed all the way through all three, but this third set of stories shows its age a bit--some inherent racism and colonial attitude, which made me uncomfortable as I read through those passages.

[Matthieu Wegh · Rating 4 out of 5]

?🤔Vandaag dit leuke laatste deeltje van Pippi met plezier uitgelezen.
=> En paar maanden geleden wat afleveringen van de tv serie van Pippi weer gezien nadat het mij vaag bekend voorkomt omdat het erg lang geleden is dat ik het als kind zag, maar nog steeds leuk dus.
MW13/1/26

[Tricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read aloud in anticipation of our Hawaii trip! We all laughed our heads off again, Pippi is so funny!

[Paulien · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5 ⭐️

[Maggie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I had gone with Pippi to the South Seas. It must have been really fun! I was Pippi for Halloween and I think that's what made me want to finish the series. I had already read book 1 and I kept putting off reading the rest. But being Pippi for Halloween inspired me to read the other 2 books. And I'm really glad I did because they're both funny. My favorite part was how Pippi always got away from the bad guys, sometimes by lying and sometimes by telling the truth. This made them confused about whether she was telling the truth about one thing or the other. I know it's not good to lie, but she does. Now I want to get Pippi on the Run, the 4th book.

[GlobeRunner · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about the adventures of Pippi and her friends on a tropical island. It's the first Pippi book I've read as an adult. Now I understand why some adults read children's literature as a mood enhancer! I was laughing before I had even finished the first paragraph. Translators must find that part quite challenging and I doubt they can give it justice in any other language (apart from Norwegian), but that's more of a loss to the adult reader than to the target audience. Great book - I would have loved this when I was little!

[Veronika Pizano · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tak sme dokončili Pippi a som rada, že si získala srdcia mojich detí. Neviem, či existuje vôbec v detskej literatúre väčší úlet, než keď pustia rodičia Tomiho a Anniku do Tichomoria (s prihliadnutím na čas písania). Tento rozmer však so začínajúcou samonariadenou karanténou kvôli koronavírusu naozaj chápem. Decká mali osýpky, mesiac doma, rodičom z nich už zašibávalo, jasné že ich poslali na mesiace preč. Takže otázka - kto po koronavíruse zoberie moje deti do Tichomoria?

[Tara · Rating 1 out of 5]

I loved Pippi as a kid, but reading this with my four year old son has been a horrible experience for me. (My son does like it, though.) Pippi is charmless, brash, and obnoxious, and the visit to the South Seas is quite imperialist. Painful for an adult to read. I really wish my son had allowed me not to finish this one!

[C · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was so funny I spat my hot chocolate out when I was reading It.
I love Pippi, Mr Nelson and her horse.
And on the back of the book it says...
"Have you ever given a shark a good telling-off? Pippi has!"
"Do you know what a squeazle is? Pippi does!
"Can you carry your dad on your shoulders? Pippi can!"
Pippi can do anything!

[Calista · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the first Pippi book. This had some fun moments and it didn't really draw me in the same way. It is strange Pippi would choose to live separate from her father. Pippi is a strong and fun character. I enjoy that about her. Maybe children would enjoy it more than an adult.

[Alexis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Too good. Re-read from my childhood years.

[Catka · Rating 5 out of 5]

With the current reading slump, plus difficulties to focus on anything more complicated than a child's tale, my old childhood favorite was an ideal choice. I have loved Pippi ever since I can remember, it is my only childhood book which has survived several flat moves and still has sentimental value for me. She was everything I was not - outspoken, outgoing, extroverted, strong, independent, loud, adventurous and funny. She was my first role model and I have a strong suspicion I even selected a friend or two (or rather let them adopt me) later on, which strongly resembled her and with whom I went on major adventures in my youth.
Simply, Pippi rulez!
Also, I would love to be on the Pacific island on Kurrekurredut with the blue seas and white beaches at the moment. It was lovely to travel, even if only in my imagination, and in such a great company.

[Sebastian · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a difference a translator makes! Shifting from the Florence Lamborn translations to Gerry Bothmer for the third and final Pippi book has transformed her adventures from clunky and oddly stilted stories into a wonderfully flowing set of interrelated humorous shorts without losing any of Lindgren’s Swedishness. I’m still a bit annoyed with Pippi, even though the next generation thinks she’s the greatest thing since whipped cream on ice cream, but Bothmer certainly managed to soften me up towards her quite a bit.

[Josephine Jubb · Rating 3 out of 5]

Njaaaaa hade svårt för delen som utspelar sig på Kurrekurreduttön vilket drar ner betyget på den sista boken i trilogin om Pippi Långstrump.

Tyckte om när fru Settergren (mitt nya favoritefternamn av någon anledning???) ändrade sig kring Pippi och lät Tommy och Annika åka med ut på Söderhavet trots de andra vuxnas åsikter om det, gillade också när de letar efter en spunk saaaamt slutdelen om julen.

Undrar också var Prussiluskan är??? Som liten döpte jag mitt gosedjurskatt till det efter karaktären i Pippi som jag ej sett skymten av i böckerna, är i chocktillstånd.

[Erk · Rating 3 out of 5]

จบแล้วสำหรับหนังสือชุดปิ๊ปปี้ ถุงเท้ายาว ทุกเล่มอ่านสนุก เพลินดีเลย ปิ๊ปปี้อาจจะดูเป็นเด็กมึนบ้างบางครั้ง แต่เธอฉลาดเกินวัยและมีจิตใจที่งดงามมาก ๆ เลย