Comet in the Moomin Valley
Komet im Mumintal (original title: Kometjakten or Mumintrollet på Kometjakt or Kometen kommer ) is the second of the Moomin books by the Finnish-Swedish writer Tove Jansson . It was published in 1946. In Germany it was published in 1961 as the third book in a row The Moomins. A funny company and storm in the Moomin Valley .
The book is considered by many to be the first book in the series because, in contrast to its previous history, Moomin's Long Journey, the Moomins now live in Moomin Valley, as in all subsequent books, and most of the recurring characters are introduced.
action
At the beginning of the story, Moomin and his companion, the Schnüferl, leave Moomin Valley alone for the first time. You discover an entrance to the sea and a cave. The following night, during a thunderstorm, the muskrat , a muskrat with an interest in philosophy , turns up at the Moomin's and moves into the Moomin house at the invitation of the Moomin father. The muskrat is convinced that the end of the earth is imminent, but does not consider this to be significant in view of the size of the universe. The next morning, the entire Mumintal is covered with dust containing phosphorus . The muskrat arouses the family's interest with its astronomical explanations. Moomin and the Schnüferl set off to visit an observatory . On the way they meet the Schnupferich, a wandering artist who accompanies them from then on. The Schnupferich tells them that the unusual natural events are caused by an approaching comet . In the observatory you will find out the exact time of the comet's impact, but you will not receive any further useful information, as the professors working there are fascinated by observing the comet, but are not interested in getting themselves or others to safety from it. Moomin, the Schnüferl and the Schnupferich are on their way back. There they meet the Snork and the Snorkfräulein - a homeless siblings - and later a Hemul, who is mainly concerned about his stamp collection in view of the impending cometary impact. The six of them reach the Moomin Valley after an adventurous journey full of obstacles. In the meantime, they have had to observe other natural disasters: all bodies of water, even the sea, have dried up and a plague of locusts is destroying the forests. All living beings have already fled the Moomin Valley, only the Moomin parents are waiting at home for Moomin and the Schnüferl. The family and their guests move together with all their household effects into the cave by the sea. There they experience the tremors and the meteor shower that the comet brings with it. After a fearful night, they carefully leave the cave the next morning and discover that the comet has only grazed the earth. The deserted valley is unscathed and the sea is also returning. The family makes their way back to the Moominhaus.
characters
In this book, the ensemble of core characters develops, which will persist through the other books. The story begins with the Moomin family, to which the Schnüferl already belongs, which appeared as "the little animal" in Moomin's long journey . With the muskrat, the Schnupferich, the Snork, the Snorkfräulein and the Hemul, the recurring characters in the book series are almost complete at the end of the story.
Both the muskrat and the snuff are inspired by Tove Jansson's partner at the time, Atos Wirtanen .
subjects
An inspiration for Jansson was the eruption of Vesuvius in March 1944. She had toured the volcano in 1939 and it had deeply impressed her. Jansson wrote much of the book during the last year of the war. It also reflects the fear of air strikes Jansson felt during the war. The possibility of a complete destruction of the earth as a living space was a widespread and deep-seated fear due to the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, even after the end of the war, and was part of the mood of the book. Jansson found comfort in letting her story end lightly. The book ends hopefully but not carefree, and leaves open how the family will deal with the return to normal after the destruction.
In many elements the book is similar to its predecessor, Moomin's Long Journey . There, too, the characters are battling a natural disaster (in this case a flood), and both books focus on a long hike.
Publication history
The first edition appeared in 1946 under the title Kometjakten ( Kometenjagd ). In 1956 a modified new edition appeared under the title Mumintrollet på Kometjakt ( Moomintroll on comet hunt ). Jansson, who later viewed the book critically, had thoroughly revised it linguistically and streamlined the plot. A few years later Jansson revised the book again and put the focus more on the characters' feelings and desires. This version contained a number of new illustrations. The book was published again in 1968 under the title Kometen kommer ( The comet is coming ).
The first German version was published in 1961 as the third book in the series in a translation by Vivica and Kurt Bandler by Verlag Benziger and is based on Jansson's second version. Other editions appeared - in contrast to The Moomins. A funny company and storm in the Mumintal without far-reaching changes in the translation - at Ravensburger Buchverlag and Arena Verlag , which also published the new translation by Birgitta Kicherer in 2001 . In 2005 it appeared in a double edition together with Moomin's long journey under the title Willkommen im Moumintal .
An audio book version, read by Barbara Auer , was published by Hörverlag .
Adaptations
Comet in Moomin Valley is one of the most widely adapted Moomin books along with Sturm im Moomin Valley .
comics
Tove Jansson himself processed the core elements of the plot again in the comic Mumintrollet och jordens undergång ( Moomintroll and the end of the world ), which appeared in 1947 as a sequel comic in the newspaper Ny Tid .
theatre
In 1948 Vivica Bandler suggested adapting Komet im Mumintal as a play. Jansson accepted the suggestion enthusiastically and wrote the play Mumintrollet och kometen ( Moomintroll and the Comet ), for which she also designed the set. It premiered on December 29, 1949, directed by Vivica Bandler, at Svenska Teatern in Helsinki .
Movie and TV
The first film adaptation was a Russian puppet cartoon in three parts, which was shown on television in 1978.
The story of Komet im Moumintal served as the basis for the 16th to 20th episodes of the Polish-Austrian stop-motion series The Moomins . On these, the Finnish based 3D - animated film The Moomins - to comet hunting ( Muumi yes punainen pyrstötähti ), which in 2010 came to the movies.
In 1992, the Japanese-Dutch cartoon Comet in Moomin Valley was the first feature film based on a Moomin book. It ties in with the Japanese animation series Moomins .
radio play
A radio play adaptation by HG Francis , directed by Heikedine Körting , was published on the Europa label .
ballet
The ballet Moomin and the Comet, with music by Panu Aaltio and choreography by Anandah Kononen , premiered at the Finnish National Opera in 2015 .
Individual evidence
- ^ History of the Moomin Books on the official website moomin.com, accessed January 6, 2017.
- ^ A b Tuula Karjalainen: Tove Jansson. The biography. From the Finnish by Anke Michler-Janhunen and Regine Pirschel. Urachhaus, Stuttgart 2014, ISBN 978-3-8251-7900-7 , pp. 163–166.
- ^ Tuula Karjalainen: Tove Jansson. The biography. From the Finnish by Anke Michler-Janhunen and Regine Pirschel. Urachhaus, Stuttgart 2014, ISBN 978-3-8251-7900-7 , p. 46.
- ↑ a b Text to illustrate the book cover on the official website tovejansson.com (English), accessed on January 6, 2017.
- ↑ Bibliography on the official website tovejansson.com (English), accessed on January 6, 2017.
- ^ Tuula Karjalainen: Tove Jansson. The biography. From the Finnish by Anke Michler-Janhunen and Regine Pirschel. Urachhaus, Stuttgart 2014, ISBN 978-3-8251-7900-7 , p. 154.
- ^ Boel Westin: Tove Jansson. Life, Art, Words. The Authorized Biography. From the Swedish of Silvester Mazzarella. Sort Of, London 2014, ISBN 978-1-908745-45-3 , pp. 389-392
- ^ Mareike Jendis: Moomin's miraculous adventures in Germany. To the reception of Tove Janson's Moomin books. Dissertation 2001, p. 62.
- ^ Tuula Karjalainen: Tove Jansson. The biography. From the Finnish by Anke Michler-Janhunen and Regine Pirschel. Urachhaus, Stuttgart 2014, ISBN 978-3-8251-7900-7 , p. 107.
- ^ Tuula Karjalainen: Tove Jansson. The biography. From the Finnish by Anke Michler-Janhunen and Regine Pirschel. Urachhaus, Stuttgart 2014, ISBN 978-3-8251-7900-7 , pp. 136. 173-174.
- ↑ Film adaptations on the website "Moomin Research", accessed on January 6, 2017.
- ^ Official website of the ballet Moomin and the Comet , accessed January 2, 2017.
- ↑ Finnish National Ballet to tour Japan with the specifically designed Moomin ballet , blog of the official website moomin.com on October 31, 2016 (English), accessed on January 2, 2017.