world_pictures

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Kajetan Kovič • Jelka Reichman, ill.
Maček Muri [Muri the Cat]
Mladinska knjiga, 1975 • ISBN 9788611122526
Kajetan Kovič is considered a contemporary
classic of Slovenian youth literature mainly due
to his unpretentious, witty and evocative fairy
tale of Kitty Town and its central character
Muri the Cat. This uplifting and optimistic idyll
of small town life starts with an early morning
coffee accompanied by a perusal of the latest
newspaper, and is followed by a morning stroll
through the town, bursting with interesting retail
and repair shops, and with an obligatory addon
in every idyllic town, two police officers who
have captured an infamous robber and are taking
him to jail. The highlight of Muri’s day out is his
lunch date with the famous belle of the town in
a first-class restaurant. The ensuing afternoon is
enjoyed in different ways: gentlemen of the feline
order attend a football match, while female cats
spend it chatting away while kitten-sitting. Not
only is Muri the Cat a true gentleman, but also a
writer and the town’s chronicler, so he ends his
day writing down the events of the day. Kovič’s
story, which is a genuine masterpiece in its own
right, was given added value by the illustrator
Jelka Reichman. Although it may appear at first
glance a celebration of idyllic life in a small town,
this is presented as a possibility and not as a
privilege of a certain social elite. Consequently,
Muri the Cat can address contemporary children
as if they were the townspeople themselves,
encouraged to enjoy living in their town. Ever
since its first edition in 1975, no shortlist of
Slovenian core texts for children has been
complete without Muri the Cat.
Kajetan Kovič (roj. 1931) se je med klasike slovenske
mladinske književnosti zapisal s preprosto, hudomušno,
a sugestivno pravljico o Mačjem mestu in njegovem
junaku mačku Muriju. Optimistična meščanska idila se
začne z jutranjo kavico in pregledom novic v časopisu,
se nadaljuje v dopoldanski sprehod po mestu, polnem
zanimivih obrti, uslug in prodajaln ter – z obveznim
dodatkom vsakega zadovoljnega mesta – policajem,
ki pelje dva znamenita roparja počivat. Vrhunec dneva
je kosilo z mestno lepotico v odlični gostilni, popoldne
pa se zadovoljstvo razdeli na dvoje: obisk nogometne
tekme za mačje gospode in prijeten prijateljski
klepet ob čuvanju otrok za mačje dame. Ker je Muri
poleg kavalirja še mestni kronist in pisatelj, preden
zaspi, skrbno popiše vse, kar mesto doživlja in Muri
z njim. To mojstrsko besedilo je likovno ovekovečila
ilustratorka Jelka Reichman (roj. 1939). Čeprav je
slikanica neke vrste hvalnica idiličnemu meščanskemu
življenju, idilo slika kot možnost in ne kot privilegij
elite, zato slikanica tudi sodobne otroke nagovarja kot
domačine, ki naj mesto uživajo, če že v njem živijo.
Od leta 1975, ko je slikanica prvič izšla, temeljni izbor
knjig za otroke ni popoln brez te slikanice.
the world through picture books • books from slovenia • 172