The Summer Book

The Summer Book by Tove Jansson is a novel written as a series of vignettes; it was published first in 1972 in Swedish and later translated to English. Although Jansson is best known for her children’s series, The Moomins, she also wrote for adults and has become the best internationally known Finnish author. The Summer Book is a work of realistic literary fiction. It follows a young girl, Sophia, and her grandmother, who are spending the summer on an island in the Gulf of Finland with Sophia’s father (Grandmother’s son). The novel explores themes of healing from loss, as Sophia and Father have recently lost Sophia’s mother. Age-related restrictions are depicted through both Grandmother and Sophia, as is the nature of grandparent-grandchild relationships, which is presented through the unique bond that has formed between the two protagonists.

This guide uses a digitized version of The Summer Book that was translated by Thomas Teal and published by Pantheon Books in 1975.

Plot Summary

The Summer Book is a series of 22 vignettes, so it contains neither a typical plot structure nor a consistent chain of events. “The Morning Swim” introduces Sophia and Grandmother, who walk out onto a forbidden ravine. While on the ravine, Sophia wants to go swimming but is scared of the deep water. The second vignette depicts Sophia waking up in the middle of the night to find double reflections in the windows, and she wakes Grandmother who explains they are double-pane windows. These first two scenes introduce the characters and context of the story.

In “The Magic Forest,” Grandmother carves abstract animals from driftwood, creating an exhibit of her carvings in a patch of scraggly woods—the magic forest. Sophia helps Grandmother collect bones from the beach for her collection, but when they find a seal skull and add it to the exhibit, Sophia has a strong emotional connection. Grandmother comforts her until she falls asleep. “The Scolder” takes place on a chilly morning while Grandmother and Sophia are walking along the beach. The scolders—a type of duck—are in their mating season, and they see one that has died. Sophia is upset; Grandmother tries to make up a nice story about the dead scolder, but Sophia wants the truth. Grandmother says the bird was too busy performing its mating call and flew into a rock. Sophia walks around the beach looking for items that have washed up on shore, and she forgets about the dead scolder.

Sophia invites a new friend to stay with her on the island, but the friend, Pipsan, is anxious. Sophia, who only likes Pipsan because of her hair, is annoyed by her fear. She goes to Grandmother for advice and begins referring to Pipsan as “Berenice,” believing it sounds more sophisticated. When Berenice’s hair is damaged by the saltwater, Sophia loses all patience with her. Grandmother steps in and shows Berenice kindness, while Berenice impresses Grandmother with her skillful drawing. The next scene, “The Pasture,” depicts Grandmother and Sophia discussing the existence of Hell. Sophia declares that it is real, while Grandmother maintains that it is not. Grandmother feels life is too hard for Hell to exist, but Sophia does not think life is difficult. Grandmother uses the conversation as a chance to teach Sophia the concept of tolerance, and the two of them bond over singing an inappropriate song.

“Playing Venice” follows Grandmother and Sophia as they create a mock-version of Venice on the beach. Grandmother carves buildings from driftwood, and they pretend a small family is living in one of the palaces. A storm develops in the night and destroys the play city, so Grandmother carves a new palace and pretends the family is fine so that Sophia will not be upset. In “Dead Calm,” Grandmother, Sophia, and Father visit an island—The Cairn—on a pleasant day. Grandmother sneaks away from the mattress where she is supposed to relax and explores the island with Sophia. Sophia’s family finds a kitten, Moppy, and takes care of it in “The Cat.” Sophia longs for Moppy to be sweet and cuddly, but the cat is partially feral and is a skilled hunter. Family friends, the Övergårds, exchange their domestic cat, Fluff, for Moppy, but Sophia loves Moppy and ends up trading back the cats. The next vignette, “The Cave,” shows Sophia and Grandmother crawling on a small trail through a thicket back to a cave Sophia has found. Grandmother feels ill, vomits, and must rest for a while. When they get to the cave, Sophia says that God lives in the back of the cave, and Grandmother gives her empty medicine box to Sophia for God to live in. They find mushrooms in the cave and have them for dinner that night.

The next two vignettes, “The Road” and “Midsummer” contrast with the others as they do not focus on the relationship between Grandmother and Sophia. “The Road” depicts a bulldozer clearing a path for a road, but when it gets near the beach, it gets stuck. Eriksson, a family friend, arrives in “Midsummer” and takes the family out salvaging items from a shipwreck, but he keeps everything for himself. “The Tent” returns to Grandmother and Sophia. Sophia stays in her father’s tent in a ravine, but she wakes in the middle of the night to visit Grandmother. Sophia helps Grandmother reminisce on the days she was a Scout leader, and Sophia feels brave enough to return to the tent for the rest of the night. A businessman builds a house on a neighboring island in “The Neighbor,” and Grandmother and Sophia visit the island. Grandmother breaks into the locked window, but she and Sophia run and hide when a boat appears. The new neighbor, Malander, and his son, Christopher, find the hiding pair by tracking them with a dog. Malander invites Grandmother and Sophia inside for a drink, and he and Grandmother converse politely until she decides it is time to leave. Sophia is uncomfortable and demonstrates poor social skills, but she can remember the name of the dog—Delilah.

In “The Robe,” Sophia visits Father’s robe, which is old and smelly and kept in the attic. She is going through a defiant phase and will only eat sandwiches. The family runs out of bread and butter, so Father goes on a supply run. A storm hits, and Sophia fears something bad will happen to Father. She gets sick and asks Grandmother to bring down the robe. Sophia falls asleep in the old robe, and Father returns home. Father buys numerous non-native plants and landscapes the yard in “The Enormous Plastic Sausage.” A short drought occurs, and Father uses all the freshwater on the island to water his plants. He buys a large plastic bladder and fills it on a nearby island, but it starts raining as he arrives back on their island. Father is featured again in “The Crooks,” when he spends the night partying on a yacht that stopped at the island without inviting his family. Next, “The Visitor” begins with Father planning for Grandmother and Sophia to stay with another family while he leaves for a business trip, but he did not tell Grandmother. Although his plans change, Grandmother still feels downtrodden, and her mood does not turn around until she is visited by an old friend, Verner. Verner is experiencing similar oppression from his family, and he has stolen their boat to come and see Grandmother.

Sophia, who has developed a fear of small creatures, dictates a book about them to Grandmother in “Of Angleworms and Others.” Dictating the book serves as a method for Sophia to process her feelings over the loss of her mother. “Sophia’s Storm” is another allegorical vignette depicting Sophia’s process of healing from grief. She prays for something interesting to happen while she and her family are on an island, and a severe storm hits, forcing them to take shelter in an abandoned building. Once Grandmother points out how dangerous the storm is, Sophia feels intense guilt. Grandmother lies and says she asked for the storm first, so that Sophia will feel better. In “Day of Danger,” Grandmother shares anecdotes of her own grandmother’s superstition, and Sophia decides she is superstitious and stresses because she found Father’s knife and pen crossed. Grandmother helps Sophia by collecting plants and other material to make a protection elixir, which Grandmother keeps in her coat pocket. When she sends the coat for cleaning, Father sprains his ankle.

In the final vignette, “August,” the family prepares to leave the cabin for winter. Grandmother leaves detailed instructions for anyone who may get stranded on the island. In the night, she wakes and, refusing to use the chamber pot, goes outside to relieve herself. She has a cardiac event, and briefly confuses the beating of her heart for a motorboat. She sits on a stump to rest.