Trollvinter
Tove Jansson
146 p.

Awe Gebers, 1957.

Back cover blurb:

Det är inte lätt att vakna ur sitt vinteride i januari och inte kunna somna om.
Mumintrollet var det första mumintroll som nånsin upplevat vintern och i början var han förfärligt ensam i det sovande huset. Men småningom befolkades hans dal med vinterns hemlighetsfulla varelser, och den här boken handlar om hur han försökte klara sig med dem och den främmande iskalla värld han ramlat in i.
Här bredvid ser ni My som klarade sig utmärkt med detsamma och den lilla hunden Ynk som däremot tyckte att tillvaron var en besvärlig historia.

This is not my favourite Moomin-book. It was nice, but never had me as roused as Trollkarlens hatt or Farlig midsommar or Mumintrollet på kometjakt did. This is probably because, of all the regular Moomin-characters, there are only actually two (Moomin himself and Little My) appears. Snufkin, my absolute favourite, didn’t appear, despite being mentioned here and there. This novel introduces a number of new characters, Tooticky, a little dog called Ynk (or, that’s his name in the Swedish version, I don’t know at all what his name in the translation is), and a quite annoying Hemul.

The absolute highlight of this novel is when the Groke, who is as terrifying as she is fascinating, appears, wanting to be warmed, but is unable to, because she is so cold. I find the Groke to be a extremely interesting character, because she seems to scare the living daylights out of everyone who has read these novels - I talk to people who haven’t read these books in years, and still they stare wide-eyed and look frightened when we reach the Groke.

The mood of this novel is different from the rest. It’s more melancholic than before, and more subdued. It doesn’t feel as sparkling and happy. It is, actually, quite depressing. However, it is (thankfully!) not at all as depressing as real life. And it is still very good.

Kärlek het som chili
(Como aqua para chocolate)
Laura Esquivel
Translated by Inger Fahlander
217 p.

Natur och Kultur, 1999.
(First published in Mexico 1989.)

Back cover blurb:

På släkten De la Garzas stora lantegendom i Mexico styr änkan Elena sin familj med järnhand. När Pedro friar till hennes yngsta dotter Tita, avvisas han eftersom Tita enligt uråldrig tradition måste förbli ogift och ta hand om sin mamma.

För att få vara i den älskades närhet gifter sig Pedro med hennes äldre syster. Och Tita finner ett sätt att ge uttryck åt sina heta känslor: hon gör sig till kökets härskare. Hennes underbara kokkonst påverkar alla i familjen, oväntat och dramatiskt.

Kärlek het som chili är en ångande het berättelse om kärlek och mat, om fantasi och passion.

This is yet another novel I’ve read for school. Most people who read this before me hated this novel with a passion, and I thought that, seeing as it seemed quite “easy”, I would hate it as well. But I didn’t. My main problem with this novel is not the fact that it is full of strange and unrealistic happenings; my main problem is that I simply did not believe in the love Tita and Pedro held for each other. Throughout the novel I hoped that Tita would get over Pedro, or Pedro would get over Tita, and Tita would get married to Doctor Brown, a lovely kind man who falls for her the first moment he sees her. Needless to say, this doesn’t happen. Pedro and Tita’s love is, apparently, the truest love ever. And I just don’t believe in that. It’s not that I don’t believe in love, what I don’t believe in is the fact that there is only ever one love for you - ever.

The book we read in class before this was Crime & Punishment. This novel is obviously less difficult to read, and I more or less flew through it. The only parts where I feel a little lost is where they start talking too much about Mexican food, which I am very bad at. I can identify enchiladas, tortillas and tacos, but that’s it. The long-winded descriptions of how to make the foods I skimmed through, even though I felt that it would be quite fun to make the food, even if it seems to be, on the most part, impossible. Where on earth would I be able to find those coffee beans you need to make the chocolate cakes which, in turn, you make hot chocolate with? I will have to investigate this further.

With this book I have realised that I have serious problems with the endings of books. The ending of this book made me groan aloud - not that! A dissatisfying ending leaves me with a bad taste in the mouth, much like sour milk. Or, more like milk which is slowly turning sour throughout the course of the novel. Kärlek het som chili is by no means a bad book. Its problem is merely that the ending isn’t very good. In fact, if you want a nice and happy openended ending, don’t read the last chapter. At least if you root for Tita and Doctor Brown, which I did. If you hope Tita and Pedro will be able to relish their love, do read the last chapter. (I kind of spoiled the ending there, didn’t I? However - there are surprises to be had!)

Mumintrollet på kometjakt
Tove Jansson
156 p.

Sörlins förlag, 1956.

Back cover blurb:

De stora äventyren började egentligen samma morgon, som Sniff hittade sin hemliga grotta. Mystiska och svårtydbara tecken började visa sig överallt. Tecken, som såg ut som en stjärna med svans efter sig. Varken Mumintrollet eller Sniff visste riktigt vad de skulle tro, men som vanligt hade Mumintrollet sina aningar. För säkerhets skull frågade han Bisamråttan, och han visste på råd; en ondskefull komet var på väg mot Mumintrollens fridfulla lilla dal.

För att få reda på mera begav sig Mumintrollet och Sniff på väg mot Observatoriet i Ensliga Bergen. Efter en tid slog de följe med Snusmumriken och de tre vännerna fick uppleva både hemska och roliga äventyr. Och under tiden var kometen på väg… allt närmare, och närmare kom den som ett ondskefullt öga.

På hemväg träffade de på Snorkfröken och hennes broder, som Mumintrollet med sin rådighet räddade från en hemsk köttätande Angostura. Så efter många äventyr kom de slutligen hem igen till det lilla blå Muminhuset i dalen, lagom för att rädda sig och Mumintrollets mamma och pappa från den stora kometen som kom svepande med sin långa glödheta svans…

This blurb tells about everything that happens in this book, but with fewer words. That is a little strange, I think, but I guess that might have been the way blurbs were written in the fifties. I was definitely not alive back then, so how could I know? (I assume I could do an investigation, but I am extremely lazy, and you can’t expect me to be bothered doing that!)

This novel is the first version, so to speak, of the story which later would be published under the name Kometen kommer. I think the latter title is a lot more dramatic, but as I haven’t read that book, I can’t really compare them, plotwise. (if I understood correctly from reading a bit about it on the internet, one of the major differences is that what is a monkey in this version, is a kitten in the other version.) The writing style is the happy and simple style Jansson uses and it makes me so happy.

And, um. It really really makes me happy. It is like Prozac. Or metaphorically so, because I’m not at all so into medicines. But you get the gist of it.

Trollkarlens hatt
Tove Jansson
164 p.

AWE Gebers, 1956.

Back cover blurb:

Den här berättelsen börjar med trolldom en tidig vårmorgon och slutar en varm augustinatt som aldrig kommer glömmas i mumindalen. Däremellan ligger mumintrollets långa sommar, full av solsken och åskväder. Den kunde ha varit som en vanlig sommar, med upptäckter av nya öar, med långrevsfiske i duggregn och lyckliga bad i bränningarna och hemlighetsfulla nattvandringar - men så hittade muminfamiljen trollkarlens hatt. Och efter det var ingenting som vanligt längre. Farlighet och spänning hade kommit in i dalen och tassade hotfullt kring deras hus, varje dag hände otroliga och upprörande saker. De hade med andra ord aldrig haft så roligt förr. Det här är historien om små och stora kryp och om glada händelser och hemska händelser som alltid måste vara hopblandade för att ens sommar ska bli riktig och underbar.

Looking through the first few pages of this book, I realised that this is from the second print run, which made me feel a little uncomfortable - maybe I shouldn’t have carried it around as I did! I carried this book around for a near week, which, for such a short volume, is maybe a bit ridiculous. However, it was interesting to see how people reacted to it. People often went “Moomin!” in an appreciating way, but others went “..Moomin!” which made me think that maybe they thought it was ridiculous. If they did, I don’t care. Moomin might be considered a childrens’ book, but it is so much greater than a childrens’ book. (Earlier today I actually went to see a couple of short Moomin films at a cinema. The ticket girl looked a little strangely at me when I said I wanted to buy a ticket.)

It’s such a wondrous story. This novel has a few things I missed from Farlig Midsommar, most notably Mårran (The Groke in English). I love the concept of Mårran - something that’s evil because she’s unloved, but you can’t love her, because then she only gets cross. It is fantastic, and I don’t think I’ve ever been  as scared of any character as I was Mårran. At one place Jansson writes: “I det frusna gräset satt Mårran och glodde på dem” (132, roughly translated to “In the frozen grass sat the Groke and stared at them”). The choice of words chills my blood. I never thought I’d be as scared of someone who “glor”. (I realise this sounds really strange, but nevermind!) She is a truly extraordinary character.

And all the other characters! Oh, how I love them! Had I the opportunity, I would definitely marry Snusmumriken (who I believe is called Snufkin in English). He wouldn’t be a very good husband, I believe, but no one is perfect. I mean, at least he wears a pretty hat!

All in all, it was a very good book. I don’t really think I’ve said much about the actual content of the book, but, well, it’s obvious that I’ll like it - it’s Moomin. Whoever doesn’t like Moomin is mentally unwell.