With the scarce wrapper

Jansson, Tove ~ Moominvalley in November

First UK Printing : Ernest Benn Limited, London : 1971

The First UK Printing printed by Ernest Benn Limited, London in 1971. 8vo., peach-coloured boards lettered in gilt to spine; together in the neatly-clipped printed wrapper featuring some of the Moomins in an autumnal wooded scene; with frontis, title vignette, and numerous other illustrations in line throughout the text, all by Tove Jansson; The BOOK is in near Fine condition with some very light pushing at the spine tips; with some faint spotting and offsetting to the endpapers, else a lovely example in the WRAPPER which is neatly price-clipped and is in Very Good++ or better condition. Slightly faded and marked ; creased along the folds with some tiny losses to the ends of spine and folds; some very light overall rubbing but still in very very collectible condition. The wrapper is protected in a removable Brodart archival cover. The eighth title in the Moomin series, which was translated from the Swedish 'Sent i november', 'Late in November' by Kingsley Hart. The story is the only one in which the Moomin family themselves (pictured here on the wrapper hiding behind a series of trees) are absent, and instead the plot follows Snuffkin as he sets out for Moominvalley in Autumn in order to discover a song which he wrote there during the Summer. Joining him is Toft and Fillyjonk, as well as Grandpa-Grumble, who seeks to fish from the Moominvalley bridge. The book is one of the more sombre in tone, purportedly due to the death of Jansson's mother, Signe Hammarsten-Jansson, during the time of writing. It was to be one of the last books she wrote on the titular family. "I couldn't go back and find that happy Moominvalley again", she later claimed. The final scene sees Toft waiting on the jetty for the family's return: "They were coming from some island where Toft had never been and which he couldn't see, he thought. Perhaps they will make up a story about the island and tell it to themselves before they go to sleep. Toft sat high up on the mountain for several hours looking out at the sea." In 2025, the book was adapted for a stage adaptation which was performed at the Gatehouse theatre from 23rd October-16th November. Very elusive with the wrapper in such superior condition, as are all the Moomin titles now .

BINDING: Hardcover
CONDITION: Near Fine
JACKET: Very Good ++