Moomintroll, a typical young boy, initially eschews the thought of the Snork Maiden, but it is obvious he quickly becomes enamoured. Moominpappa remains a somewhat mysterious character, since he only appears at the beginning and end of the story, but we learn that he is in the process of writing his memoirs, which anticipates the third book in the series of novels. This book introduces new characters and adds details about the characters we already know. They then flee back to Moominvalley along with the Snork and Snork Maiden, characters they meet along the way, to face their fate. Moomintroll and Sniff set out to visit the astronomers in the Lonely Mountains, where they are given a date and time for the comet’s arrival. All these signs, along with the Muscrat’s sense of foreboding, are enough to hint that something is about to happen. There are signs about Moominvalley: curling marks on trees, seagulls that form a shape of a comet, ants that form a similar shape on the ground, and even crocodiles that arrange themselves in the shape of a comet tail. The plot of Comet in Moominland is easily suggested by the title. It’s easy to see the appeal for children. The Moomin home, we find, is a safe and supporting place that empowers rather than questions. Moominmamma may try to load her son and Sniff with all the accoutrements of home for their adventure, but neither her nor Moominpappa blanche at their heading into the world on their own. When Moomintroll decides to head to the Professors in the Observatory on the Lonely Mountains, he faces no obstacle from his parents. And this is also a world in which children have agency and independence. The world of the Moomins is a magical place filled with fantastical creatures and tree spirits a world created for children. Jansson skilfully builds upon the world of her first novella. When a new path in the valley is discovered Sniff intrepidly adopts the mantle of ‘Path Pioneer’, and in another scene in which he endures an entire day floating down a river without incident, Sniff is bored enough to tell Moomintroll that he likes small adventures.

Sniff remains nervous and something of a hypochondriac, although Jansson reveals that Sniff is not entirely timid. Sniff, who is only identified as a little creature in the first book, is now given his name. This second story and its characters, however, still look back to the time of the flood.

The first book published, The Moomins and the Great Flood, recounted how Moomintroll’s family come to live in Moomin Valley after he leaves the great forest with his mother in search of Moominpappa and a new home.

Comet in Moominland may be the second story Tove Jansson published about the Moomins, but it is generally counted as the first book in the Moomin series of eight novels.

Comet in moominland book