FEATURES OF SHORT STORIES FOR CHILDREN BY MOŠO ODALOVIĆ

Abstract

When considering the creative opus of Mošo Odalović, famous Serbian poet and writer, illustrator, calligrapher and above all the artist who marked Serbian children’s literature in the second half of the 20th and during the first decades of the 21st century, we point out that his accomplishments present an integral part of the reading. There is almost not a single child who does not know by heart the song Mama je glagol od glagola raditi (Mum is a verb from the verb work), and that is why his poetic work usually comes to the forefront. Of course, this is not without reason because a total of 27 poetry collections have been published so far. On the other hand, his prose works, Baba je tu, ja sam u Japanu (Grandma is here, I am in Japan, 2003) and Evo seckam vodu za hrčka (I am cutting water for the hamster, 2008), and especially short stories, somehow remained in the shadow of scientific research. Therefore, this work focuses on the analysis of the features distinctive for the short prose of Mošo Odalović, more precisely the prose miniatures within the collection Daj mi sve trešnje (Give me all the cherries, 2006), with the goal of presenting the narrative skills and determining the role and significance of this author within the contemporary Serbian narrative prose for children.