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Emilia Dziubak , Barbara Kosmowska

Tru

YEAR: 2016

COUNTRY: Poland

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Title of the work

Tru

Country of the First Edition

Country/countries of popularity

Poland

Original Language

Polish

First Edition Date

2016

First Edition Details

Barbara Kosmowska, ill. Emilia Dziubak, Tru. Poznań: Media Rodzina, 2016, 63 pp.

ISBN

9788380081956

Genre

Fiction
Illustrated works
Novels

Target Audience

Children

Cover

Courtesy of Media Rodzina.


Author of the Entry:

Krzysztof Rybak, University of Warsaw, rybak.km@gmail.com

Peer-reviewer of the Entry:

Katarzyna Marciniak, University of Warsaw, kamar@al.uw.edu.pl

Susan Deacy, University of Roehampton, s.deacy@roehampton.ac.uk

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Leaf pattern
Leaf pattern

Title of the work

Tru

Country of the First Edition

Country/countries of popularity

Poland

Original Language

Polish

First Edition Date

2016

First Edition Details

Barbara Kosmowska, ill. Emilia Dziubak, Tru. Poznań: Media Rodzina, 2016, 63 pp.

ISBN

9788380081956

Genre

Fiction
Illustrated works
Novels

Target Audience

Children

Cover

Courtesy of Media Rodzina.


Author of the Entry:

Krzysztof Rybak, University of Warsaw, rybak.km@gmail.com

Peer-reviewer of the Entry:

Katarzyna Marciniak, University of Warsaw, kamar@al.uw.edu.pl

Susan Deacy, University of Roehampton, s.deacy@roehampton.ac.uk

Photograph by Piotr Dziubak, courtesy of the Illustrator.

Emilia Dziubak (Illustrator)

Emilia Dziubak graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Poznań (Poland) and now is mainly known for her children’s books illustrations. Since her debut in 2011 she has illustrated over 50 books by Polish and foreign authors (e. g. a new Polish edition of Mary Norton’s The Borrowers series published by Dwie Siostry). She also worked with publishers outside Poland, for example on Martin Widmark’s Lilla Sticka i landet Lycka published in Sweden in 2016. Besides children’s books she also publishes in many Polish magazines such as Wprost, Przekrój and Art & Business. Before Być jak tygrys [The Secret Life of a Tiger] she illustrated some of the other Przemysław Wechterowicz’s books: W pogoni za życiem [Chasing Life] (Ezop, 2012), Proszę mnie przytulić [Please, Hug me] (Ezop, 2013), and Uśmiech dla żabki [A Smile for a Froggie] (Ezop, 2014). For Proszę mnie przytulić she has received a Warsaw Literary Award in 2014. Her works were presented at Tu czy tam? Współczesna polska ilustracja dla dzieci  [Here or There? Contemporary Polish Illustration for Children] exhibition in Zachęta National Gallery of Art in Warsaw in 2016 (accessed: January 30, 2017).

More information about the artist and her works see here (accessed: July 3, 2018).


Bio prepared by Krzysztof Rybak, University of Warsaw, rybak.km@gmail.com 


Portrait, courtesy of the Author (phot. Jacek Antczak). 

Barbara Kosmowska (Author)

Barbara Kosmowska (1958- ) was born in Bytów, Poland. She studied Polish Philology at the University of Gdańsk and for a short time worked in her home town as a teacher of Polish language. In 1999 she received a PhD at the University of Gdańsk, for a thesis was dedicated to the work of a Polish children’s author, Zofia Urbanowska (1894–1939). Kosmowska has worked as an assistant professor (adiuncta) at the Pomeranian University in Słupsk. She has written almost 30 books (e. g. Teren prywatny [A Private Territory] (2001), described as a Polish version of Bridget Jones’ Diary by Helen Fielding). Her books include over 10 for children and YA, for example Samotni.pl [Lonely.pl] (2011), Kolorowy szalik [Coloured Scarf] (2014), and Buba [Buba] series (2002–2007). In 2007 she received the Book of the Year Award from the Polish Section of IBBY (International Board of Books for Young People) as well as first prize in the Astrid Lindgren Competition for her Pozłacana rybka [Gold-Plated Fish] (2007).


Bio prepared by Krzysztof Rybak, University of Warsaw, rybak.km@gmail.com


Sequels, Prequels and Spin-offs

Sequel: Barbara Kosmowska, Tru. Love story, Poznań: Media Rodzina, 2020, 60 pp.

Summary

A hare called Tru lives in a town divided into two distinct districts: one rich and one poor. Tru inhabits the latter with his siblings and mom, a proud and active feminist (p. 8) and a single mother. The main protagonist is convinced that he is a "common hare" ["szarak pospolity"] (p. 9), as it states on his birth certificate. He is an underdog at school, especially because he can’t afford the expensive accessories, so popular among his peers. To overcome social and economic obstacles, he designs gadgets made from objects available in the woods, such as a banner-holder for his mother and a sandwich machine to prepare lunch for his colleagues. With his new machines, toys, and vehicles, Tru manages to erase the differences between rich and poor communities in his hometown and eventually becomes a local hero.

Analysis

In the town centre stands a statue of a local hero, Zając Herkules [Hercules the Hare]; also, a Zając Herkules award was given to Tru for the creation of innovations for the forest. Unfortunately, the text does not explain the origins of the name or the deeds done by Zając Herkules for the community. Using the mythological reference, the author can create a modern version of the classical hero, regarded as a role model for his community. It could also be the case that Tru became inspired by Zając Herkules’ deeds (although this is never made clear to the reader) and decided to fight the obstacles and injustices in the world the best way he could, with his talent for inventing helpful new objects for the community. This shows the young reader that it is not only the strong and muscular, like the mythical Hercules (or his hare fellow, Zając Herkules), who may become a hero, but anyone can if only their talents are used to perform good deeds.


Further Reading

Mik, Anna, Patrycja Pokora, and Maciej Skowera, eds., Czytanie menażerii. Zwierzęta w literaturze dziecięcej, młodzieżowej i fantastycznej [Reading a Menagerie: Animals in Children’s Young Adult, and Fantasy Literature],  Warszawa: Wydawnictwo SBP, 2016.

Emilia Dziubak. Umysł stuprocentowego introwertyka in Frąckiewicz, Sebastian, Ten łokieć źle się zgina. Rozmowy o ilustracji. Wołowiec: Czarne, 2017, 11–52.

Addenda

Hercules the Hare statue (illustration by Emilia Dziubak), courtesy of Media Rodzina.

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