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kdermody's review
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
alisonburnis's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
In a series of vignettes, Tove Jansson tells the story of Sophia and her grandmother, on an island in the Gulf of Finland for their annual summer holiday. Sophia’s mother has recently died, and her father is with them on vacation, but basically invisible. These little snapshots are illustrated with sketches by Jansson, and tell the story of summer: warm and meandering, little adventures.
This is also peppered with grief: Sophia’s six year old anger, and her grandmother’s longer life with its many forms of loss. This is funny and sweet and yes, very summery. I really loved it. The true feeling of summer is here, even if I read it in rainy and cool Nova Scotia.
This is also peppered with grief: Sophia’s six year old anger, and her grandmother’s longer life with its many forms of loss. This is funny and sweet and yes, very summery. I really loved it. The true feeling of summer is here, even if I read it in rainy and cool Nova Scotia.
betweenbookends's review against another edition
4.0
This gentle episodic novella follows six year old Sophia and her prickly grandmother over a sunlit and stormy summer in an island off the coast of Finland. The stories from their summer ebb and flow, happy times and more melancholic ones, the rich natural world of the island bursting off the page, and their conversations ranging from being trivial to transcendental matters of the heart.
There is an undercurrent of grief, of coming of age after an insurmountable loss, Sophia’s mother having passed away. But it’s far, far from being sentimental. In fact it feels more distanced, the island becoming a world of its own for Sophia and her grandmother, a place where realities outside of the island can’t quite touch them. A self contained bubble.
The novel is dotted through with Jansson’s simplistic and stunning illustrations that served as such a treat whilst reading. It is wise and equal parts whimsical and cynical. The juxtaposition of the young and the old; a volatile, precocious granddaughter and her resigned, slightly irritable grandmother somehow manage to surmise a lot of life in a way that feels very complete.
There is an undercurrent of grief, of coming of age after an insurmountable loss, Sophia’s mother having passed away. But it’s far, far from being sentimental. In fact it feels more distanced, the island becoming a world of its own for Sophia and her grandmother, a place where realities outside of the island can’t quite touch them. A self contained bubble.
The novel is dotted through with Jansson’s simplistic and stunning illustrations that served as such a treat whilst reading. It is wise and equal parts whimsical and cynical. The juxtaposition of the young and the old; a volatile, precocious granddaughter and her resigned, slightly irritable grandmother somehow manage to surmise a lot of life in a way that feels very complete.
sharyce's review against another edition
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.5
josephtrinidad115's review
5.0
my filipino grandmother would never ever let me throw tantrum the way sophia does
bel017's review
I'm sure I'll think about these vignettes for a long time. The way Sophie's grief comes out, her relationship with her grandmother, the lack of sentimentality, the deep connection with their surroundings, all so elegantly portrayed. So much to contemplate.
callieswag17's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5