The Moomins and The Exploits of Moominpappa
Just a few days ago, during a visit to Covent Garden in London, I chanced upon a quaint shop with a light blue wood and glass panelled door, with a sign that simply says “The MOOMIN Shop”. I couldn’t help noticing the whimsical white creatures that adorned the glass panels just below the sign. As I entered and climbed up a flight of stairs, there appeared before me a spatial room filled with merchandise dedicated to the Moomins. Being in this shop reminded me of my first encounter with the Moomins through a book I read sometime in 2022. I’ll talk about the book in a bit, but first, I will say something about them.
“Just what or who are the Moomins?”, you might ask.
They are a whimsical family of characters created by Finnish writer and artist Tove Jansson. They first appeared in her first book, The Moomins and the Great Flood, published in 1945. Since then several more were published, including short stories, picture books, and comic strips until 1993.
The Moomins are depicted as white, roundish trolls with large snouts, resembling hippos. The Moomin family comprises Moomintroll and his doting parents, Moominpappa and Moominmamma. A carefree and adventurous family, they live in their house in Moominvalley, an idyllic and peaceful valley, which lies between the sea and the mountains. A river runs through the valley. In the stories you’ll read about them embarking on all kinds of fantastical adventures.
Jansson began creating Moomin characters during the Winter War in Finland, aiming to bring joy amidst the turmoil of conflict. Her books featuring the Moomin family and their quirky friends explore themes of family, friendship, nature, and the importance of community. They resonate with both children and adults due to their blend of whimsical storytelling with poignant reflections on human emotions and societal issues. Over time, the Moomin stories gained international acclaim, being translated into approximately fifty languages.
After I’d read a blog post about Tove Jansson and her oeuvre about two years ago, my interest in the Moomins was piqued, and I was determined that I should read the first Moomin novel that I laid my hands on. The Exploits of Moominpappa (first published in 1950) is that book.
In his defining memoirs, Moominpappa recounts his life and adventures beginning with how he found himself at an orphanage with these opening lines:
One cold and windy autumn evening many years ago a newspaper parcel was found on the doorstep of the Home for Moomin Foundlings. In that parcel I lay, quite small and shivering with cold, and without the least idea of where my father and mother were.
Yielding to his dear son Moomintroll’s persuasion, Momminpappa wrote the book for him and his friends, Sniff and Snufkin, with the hope that it might bring ‘delight and instruction’ to them. In one fabulous story after another, often with breaks between writing and reading aloud, Moominpappa delights his listeners with adventurous episodes featuring not only the fearless author himself but also the fathers of Sniff and Snufkin – the rather forgetful and anxious Muddler and the worry-free Joxter. They are thrilled to bits and opine aloud that their fathers would become famous when the book becomes a bestseller.
The adventures really begin when Moominpappa meets new friends, the genius inventor Hodgkins, Muddler and Joxter. Together they build a houseboat in which to live and sail. They trick the enormous Edward the Booble into helping them to launch the boat to the river. They sail away before Edward vents his anger on them. In their voyages they encounter remarkable creatures like the Hemulen, the Niblings, the Mymble family, Daddy Jones (the King), a ghost and a giant fish.
The book ends with a surprising epilogue that brings joy to Sniff and Snufkin and a special treat from Hodgkins.
Before Moominpappa puts down his memoir pen, he writes, alluding to the the new adventure the Moomins are going to have with their friends:
And in the foggy dawn they all tumbled out in the garden. The eastern sky was a wonderful rose-petal pink, promising a fine clear August day. A new door to the Unbelievable, to the Possible, a new day that can always bring you anything if you have no objection to it.
Moominpappa’s reminiscences can get philosophical at times. It’s not surprising since (it is said) he loves thinking about life’s big issues and considers himself to be knowledgeable and an expert in many fields. But he’s humorous as well, especially in pointing out the quirkiness of the characters he encounters.
Like Moominpappa’s rapturous listeners, I was thrilled to bits as I read chapter after chapter of Moominpappa’s memoirs. There isn’t a dull moment in it and the prose is simple, fast-paced and attention-grabbing, as children’s stories should be. And the dialogue is both engaging and lively. There are some wonderful illustrations in the book giving readers a good idea how the Moomins and their friends look like.
I would say without any hesitation that this is a delightful book to read aloud, as Moominpappa did, to the whole family. Adults and children alike would enjoy such a story. I wish I had read the book when I was young. It could have been a much more delightful experience then.
Note: This is the updated version of the post that first appeared in my book blog Passion for Books.