May 2010 Guest Editor Philip Ardagh says of this book:
What can I say? In early May, I'll be one of a number of guests of the Finnish Embassy and Puffin books celebrating 65 years of the remarkable Moomin books, written and illustrated by the late, great Finnish artist/illustrator/author Tove Jansson. How important are Moomin books to me as a reader, writer and (alleged) human being? When Jansson died, I dedicated the book I was writing at the time to her memory. The fact that the Finnish publisher of my Eddie Dickens trilogy was her original publisher means more than I can say. (Proud, or what?) Moomin books are like nothing else I'd ever read. I couldn't wait to spend my birthday-present book tokens on them. Sure, they contain charm and quirkiness, but this is coupled with insight and wisdom rare in any books, children's or otherwise. They are unique. If I had to chose a favourite, it would be Comet in Moominland. Choosing a favourite character is even harder. Little My? Snufkin? Sniff? If you haven't yet experienced the Moomin valley, I urge you visit it as soon as possible.
Soon to be MOOMINVALLEY, a MAJOR ANIMATED SERIES on SKY ONE starring Taron Egerton and Rosamund Pike!
A comet is speeding towards Earth and nobody in Moominvalley knows what to do! Will it destroy everything and everyone?
Moomintroll decides to find out. So, with Sniff, he sets off on an expedition to ask the Professor if a comet is really on its way to destroy the Earth.
On their journey they meet some interesting people - such as Snufkin the super tramp, and the Hemulen who rescues them from an underground tunnel - and have narrow escapes from such menaces as crocodiles and giant lizards!
And on their way back Moomintroll meets the beautiful Snork Maiden and is a changed Moomin for ever after. But what about the comet - and is the World Wiped Out?... _____
Tove Jansson was born in Finland in 1914. She began her career as a cartoonist and went on to write and illustrate many books for adults and children.
She drew her first Moomin in the 1930s, just for fun, and in 1945 he became a character in a children's story. Tove became world-famous for her Moomin books, which began with The Moomins and the Great Flood, Comet in Moominland and Finn Family Moomintroll.
Tove Jansson received many prestigious awards during her lifetime, including the international Hans Christian Andersen Medal. She died in 2001, aged 87.