Comet in Moominland, the first full-length Moomin novel, was published 80 years ago. Tove Jansson revised the text a decade later and again in 1968, reorganising the story and adding new characters. This version became definitive and has been translated into over 60 languages. Now for the first time this edition can be read in English, in a brand-new translation.

Tove Jansson’s story of a mysterious, threatening comet, and the journey of discovery by Moomin and his friend Sniff across the Lonely Mountains, has captivated generations of readers across the world. The story introduced much-loved Moomin characters, including the free-spirited Snufkin, the philosophical Muskrat, the intuitive Snorkmaiden, obsessional Hemulens and strange Hattifatteners.

Prospectors who can smell money. Big money, or they would have stayed in the sun. Like diviners, they put their ear to the granite and say, “Here lie such extraordinary riches that no-one will be able to refuse.” When the fun is over, they are already far away. Far from poisoned watercourses and contaminated ground, far from unemployed miners whose lungs have breathed in silica, asbestos and diesel fumes.

In the latest instalment of the Millennium series, spring returns to Sweden’s far north, but a night-time explosion destroys a historic river bridge in the forest, shocks the residents of the small town of Gasskas and leaves the police playing catch-up in a fast-moving situation. Natural resources in the region are being shamelessly exploited by shadowy multinationals and their local government puppets, opposed only by Lisbeth Salander’s niece Svala and a group of environmental activists. What begins as a protest spins out of control when a young journalist is found murdered. Lisbeth’s long-term sidekick, journalist Mikael Blomkvist, not in the best of health, is about to move north from Stockholm to become the editor at of the local newspaper and be near his daughter and grandson. He  unravels a story that has the makings of an explosive scandal. Lisbeth, meanwhile, is desperate to track down her old hacker friend, Plague, who has vanished. When it becomes clear that both she and Svala are on a secret underworld hit list, Lisbeth decides to stake everything on keeping Svala safe.

When Martina, a student at Stockholm University, finds a note on her desk that says ‘Gustav called’ and wonders who he is, she has no idea that she’s about to fall in love. The first-time reader of Maken (literally ‘The Mate’) is equally unprepared for the turbulent relationship that they are about to have with Martina’s story.

Gun-Britt Sundström’s novel has engaged and provoked readers since it was published in 1976. It has appeared in several editions and continues to provide such contemporary authors as Sara Stridsberg with a source of inspiration. The concept of the Maken divorce became familiar in the 1970s, when wives realized they didn’t need to be married to be happy – and indeed might be happier alone.

The couple spend seven years of their lives, more or less, involved in a relationship that begins as a meeting of twin souls – Martina feels he’s not her other half, but rather her other whole – but quickly begins to show cracks. Gustav claims he’s found the love of his life and is eager to marry. Martina has come to the realisation that marriage is something that doesn’t suit her temperament, while new discoveries, conversations with strangers, and freedom do. In one scene, she pulls deep draughts on her pipe, blissful that she has no foetus to consider. Their negotiations, accusations and attempts to accommodate their needs for sexual intimacy, space and commitment form the core of the book; student life in Stockholm in the 1970s provides the backdrop.

This new addition to Norvik Press’s well-established ‘Lagerlöf in English’ series turns the spotlight on the power of short stories. The volume contains a carefully chosen selection of Nobel laureate Lagerlöf’s most important stories covering a range of themes, genres and periods of her career, translated by an experienced and prize-winning trio of Lagerlöf translators, Linda Schenck, Peter Graves and Sarah Death.

Key autobiographical pieces, morality tales both dark and light, legends from several lands and folklore-inspired narratives combine to reveal the breadth and stylistic range of Lagerlöf’s storytelling skills.

This is a collection of interest to general readers but also a useful teaching tool for Swedish and comparative literature courses around the world. The book includes a comprehensive and accessible introduction by Lagerlöf specialist Bjarne Thorup Thomsen (University of Edinburgh).

Erik Mattsson has long been an expert in meeting techniques and has written practical and entertaining handbooks on getting people to communicate. In this book, he teams up with Pia Moberg to add a cross-cultural dimension and the book looks at different expectations and assumptions that can derail successful communication. In the post-Covid era, practical tips for running in-person, online and hybrid meetings are a key feature.