{"product_id":"the-summer-book-by-tove-jansson-w-introduction-by-kathryn-davis","title":"The Summer Book \/ by Tove Jansson w\/ introduction by Kathryn Davis","description":"\u003cp\u003eNYRB, 2008. Trade paperback. VG. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eIn \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003eThe Summer Book\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e Tove Jansson distills the essence of the summer—its sunlight and storms—into twenty-two crystalline vignettes. This brief novel tells the story of Sophia, a six-year-old girl awakening to existence, and Sophia’s grandmother, nearing the end of hers, as they spend the summer on a tiny unspoiled island in the Gulf of Finland. The grandmother is unsentimental and wise, if a little cranky; Sophia is impetuous and volatile, but she tends to her grandmother with the care of a new parent. Together they amble over coastline and forest in easy companionship, build boats from bark, create a miniature Venice, write a fanciful study of local bugs. They discuss things that matter to young and old alike: life, death, the nature of God and of love. “On an island,” thinks the grandmother, “everything is complete.” In \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003eThe Summer Book\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, Jansson creates her own complete world, full of the varied joys and sorrows of life.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Desierto Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56825660997798,"sku":null,"price":9.5,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0659\/3465\/5654\/files\/summerbook.webp?v=1784309270","url":"https:\/\/249f2c-1b.myshopify.com\/products\/the-summer-book-by-tove-jansson-w-introduction-by-kathryn-davis","provider":"DESIERTO BOOKS","version":"1.0","type":"link"}