Tove Jansson (1914 – 2001) was a Swedish-speaking Finnish author, famous for her Moomin books, classics of children’s literature translated into 50 languages. The critics consider Jansson “one of the greatest children’s writers there has ever been” (T. Pratchett) and her novels “the most original children’s literature published after Alice in Wonderland”. She wrote and illustrated 9 novels about Moomins and they have not yet been translated into Croatian.

Moomins are a family of fanciful creatures: Moominpappa, Moominmamma, Moomintroll (son) and their friends. In Moominsummer Madness a massive wave causes flood in Moominvalley. Moomins try to escape and come across a floating house. They realise soon it is not an ordinary house but a theatre. The host greets them and soon they start learning about the scenery, props, costumes… In the meantime, Moomintroll and his friend get lost and Moominpappa decides to write a play and perform it hoping children will hear about it and find their way back with the theatergoers. In the end they all reunite and the flood goes away.
This novel is magical, filled with comforting wisdom about life and how to deal with a crisis. The family had to abandon their home but they managed to get through various strange events with calm because they a resourceful little creature who know how to make the best out of the worst. The warm, generous world of Jansson’s fiction shows children, in indirect way, that strange and perilous things in life can happen but Moomins face them bravely, with persistence, positive attitude and humour. And always there is the promise of another day. All comers are welcome (as they were in the floating theatre) and everyone is precious. Together, this colourful group of characters explores themes of friendship, nature, empathy, and generosity. Life’s good and let’s be good to each other.