''Moominpappa at Sea'' ( Swedish: ''Pappan och havet'', literally "The Father and the Sea") is the eighth book in the

Moomin The Moomins (, ) are the central characters in a series of novels, short stories, picture books, and a comic strip by the Finnish writer and illustrator Tove Jansson, originally published in Swedish by Finnish publisher Schildts. They are a ...

books by Finnish author

Tove Jansson Tove Marika Jansson (; 9 August 1914 – 27 June 2001) was a Swedish-speaking Finnish author, novelist, painter, illustrator and comic strip author. Brought up by artistic parents, Jansson studied art from 1930 to 1938 in Helsinki, Stockholm, ...

. First published in 1965, the novel is set contemporaneously with ''

Moominvalley in November ''Moominvalley in November'' (Swedish language, Swedish: ''Sent i november'', 'Late in November') is the ninth and final book in the Moomin series by Finland, Finnish author Tove Jansson, and was first published in her native Swedish language, Sw ...

'' (1970), and is the final installment in the series where the titular Moomin family are present within the narrative. The book follows the titular Moomin family as they arrive on a deserted island in the middle of the sea, documenting their experiences as they become familiar with their newfound surroundings. The book is notable for its introspective and contemplative tone, which is in contrast to the other books found within the Moomin series. The book is based primarily around the character of

Moominpappa A large number of characters appear in the ''Moomin'' series by Tove Jansson. The original Swedish language, Swedish names are given with the etymologies and word associations suggested by Yvonne Bertills in her 2003 dissertation. Main character ...

, who was heavily inspired by Jansson's father, Viktor Jansson. The book's original title is a loose reference to

Ernest Hemingway Ernest Miller Hemingway ( ; July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer and journalist. Known for an economical, understated style that influenced later 20th-century writers, he has been romanticized fo ...

novel ''

The Old Man and the Sea ''The Old Man and the Sea'' is a 1952 novella by the American author Ernest Hemingway. Written between December 1950 and February 1951, it was the last major fictional work Hemingway published during his lifetime. It tells the story of Santiag ...

'', though this is not reflected in the translation.

Plot

Moominpappa becomes dissatisfied with his life in

Moominvalley Moominvalley (, ) is a fictional place, where the Moomins live in the tales by Finnish author Tove Jansson. Especially in the early books Moominvalley is depicted as a beautiful place with green slopes, rivers, fruit trees, flowers and a pla ...

, so he organizes a journey for his family to find a lighthouse in the sea. Upon arrival, they discover the island to be a desolate and lonely place, inhabited only by an unfriendly fisherman. Moominpappa wishes to become the lighthouse keeper, but he gives up when he cannot figure out how to fix the lantern. He tries other projects, such as building a pier, fishing, and researching a small lake, but fails at all of them. Meanwhile, Moominmamma becomes increasingly melancholic as her dream of planting a garden fails, and her longing for home grows stronger. She eventually starts painting the walls of the lighthouse with flowers until she has painted all of Moominvalley. She discovers that she can walk inside the painting to find peace.

Moomintroll A large number of characters appear in the ''Moomin'' series by Tove Jansson. The original Swedish names are given with the etymologies and word associations suggested by Yvonne Bertills in her 2003 dissertation. Main characters Moomintroll ...

explores the nearby woods and finds a thicket that he eventually moves into. He is disappointed to find it already inhabited by ants and asks Little My for help in getting them to move elsewhere.

Little My Little My (original , literally: "Little Mu") is a character in the Moomin series of books by Tove Jansson. The character first appeared in the fourth book, The Exploits of Moominpappa (1950). She is a small, determined and fiercely independe ...

solves the problem by exterminating the ants with petroleum, much to Moomintroll's dismay. At night, Moomintroll looks for the seafillies whom he admires greatly. The fillies are selfish and mean to Moomintroll, but he does not care. As he tries to attract them by waving his lamp, he instead attracts the Groke. Every night, Moomintroll tries to call for the seafillies, but only ends up being accompanied by the Groke. Slowly, he starts to grow fond of her, and when the lamp ultimately runs out of kerosene, the Groke is no longer cold. As the story draws to a close, the once disjointed family slowly comes together again. Together, they confront the sea and save the lonely fisherman. When they discover that his birthday is coming, they invite him to a party at the lighthouse, which he reluctantly attends, only to slowly realize that he is the original lighthouse keeper. Moominpappa and the fisherman find new purpose in their lives through their shared experience as the novel draws to a close.

Location

The map at the front of ''Moominpappa at Sea'' locates the island in The

Gulf of Finland The Gulf of Finland (; ; ; ) is the easternmost arm of the Baltic Sea. It extends between Finland to the north and Estonia to the south, to Saint Petersburg—the second largest city of Russia—to the east, where the river Neva drains into it. ...

. It even gives a location: . This is about east of

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

, and south of the coast of

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

; though no island exists there in real life. Jansson is said to have used real-life

Söderskär Lighthouse The Söderskär lighthouse ( Finnish: ''Söderskärin majakka'', Swedish: ''Söderskär fyr'', South Skerry lighthouse) is a decommissioned 19th-century lighthouse in the outer Porvoo archipelago of the Gulf of Finland. It was built in 1862, rep ...

Porvoo Porvoo (; ; ) is a city in Finland. It is located on the south coast of the country, on the Gulf of Finland. Porvoo lies in the eastern part of the Uusimaa region. The population of Porvoo is approximately , while the Porvoo sub-region, sub-re ...

as a model when writing the lighthouse island of the book.

Adaptations

The novel has been adapted into animation several times, including episodes 25 and 26 of the 1990 television series ''Moomin'', and episodes 23, 24, and 25 of the 2019 television series ''Moominvalley''. After Tove Jansson's death, the producer of the 1990 ''Moomin'' television series, Dennis Livson, planned to make a film adaptation based on ''Moominpappa at Sea,'' but Tove Jansson's niece Sophia Jansson did not give him permission for the adaptation.

Reception

Kirkus Reviews wrote, "A psychological drama with an allegorical level, this chapter of the Moomin story cedes Moomin territory to the adults without totally dispossessing the children."

References

External links

The Moomin Trove
{{The Moomin Series 1965 children's books 1965 fantasy novels 1960s Finnish novels Moomin novels Novels set on islands Swedish-language novels 1965 Finnish novels Gulf of Finland