As well as the Moomin books, Jansson also wrote more adult novels, often with autobiographical elements. Of these, The Summer Book is probably the best regarded and contains many themes and ideas also found in the Moomins.
The book has two principle characters - six year old Sophia whose mother has died, and her elderly Grandmother, who spend an extended summer living on a small island in the Gulf of Finland with Sophie's papa. The book was written in 1972 in the same year that Jansson's own mother died, and the young girl was inspired by her niece Sophia.
The book does not have a conventional narrative - each chapter is a small vignette of life on the island as Sophie explores both her physical environment and her emotions that often spill out in unexpected ways. Her grandmother is also all too aware of her own physical limitations - she relies on a walking stick and takes tablets - but the pair climb over slippery rocks and crawl though tangled thickets. Sophie's many questions are answered candidly.
“When are you going to die?” the child asked. And Grandmother answered, “Soon. But that is not the least concern of yours.” “Why?” her grandchild asked.
The relationship between Sophia and her Grandmother is one of equals, one at the start of her life looking forward, and one approaching her end, reflecting on her experiences. They have much in common - a love of mischief, desire for independence and stubbornness. They are both fierce advocates for questioning authority, especially of the religious kind.
“You can believe what you like, but you must learn to be tolerant.”
Sophia's grief for her mother is alluded to. It's only mentioned once, a few pages in, but it represented by things like dreaming about losing things or a severe storm battering the island. Grief is not a problem to be solved, but something to be lived with - one scene has Sophia wondering what will happen to a worm that has been cut in half, concluding that both halves simply have to go on living, even though their lives would now be quite different.
The island is also a metaphor for self determination, separate from the "normality" of the mainland. In her life, Jansson would spend many happy summers on such an island with her partner Tuulikki Pietilä, at a time when same sex relationships were still illegal in Finland. The island is a self contained eco-system but at the same time it is fragile and must be treated with careful respect.
Only farmers and summer guests walk on the moss. What they don’t know – and it cannot be repeated too often – is that moss is terribly frail. Step on it once and it rises the next time it rains. The second time, it doesn’t rise back up. And the third time you step on moss, it dies.
One poignant chapter concerns a cat, growing from a kitten into a lean and wild little animal, refusing to show affection other than by leaving the occasional bloody carcass on the floor. Eventually the cat is traded for another one that was happy to purr and sleep on Sophia's lap, but she soon realises which cat was the right one for her
“‘What’s wrong now?’ Grandmother said. ‘I want Moppy back!’ Sophia screamed. ‘But you know how it’ll be,’ Grandmother said. ‘It’ll be awful,’ said Sophia gravely. ‘But it’s Moppy I love.’ And so they traded cats again.”
The book ends with the family preparing to leave the island at the end of the summer, with Grandmother carefully packing things away and tidying the house, with a feeling of setting her affairs in order in preparation for her eventual demise. She thinks that she can hear a herring boat in the distance but realises that the slow thumping is something else
“Isn’t that funny,” Grandmother said. “It’s only my heart, it’s not a herring boat at all.” For a long time she wondered if she should go back to bed or stay where she was. She thought that she would stay for a while.
