Waitapu

by Joža Horvat

Priča o WAITAPU zapravo je poetska bajka o potrebi da se ruše granice, to je pouka o nevidljivim i vidljivim barijerama, shvatljivim i neshvatljivim zabranama, o nenadomjestivoj ulozi smionih da postavljaju pitanja i onda i kada ne postoje pouzdani odgovori, o erosu traganja kojemu nije pokretač lutanje, nego vjera u pronalaženje. - Branimir Donat.

Genres: Fiction, Read For School, Fantasy

162 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1986

About the author

Joža Horvat was born in Kotoriba, Međimurje, at the time in Austria-Hungary. During World War II he fought in Yugoslav Partisans, which later inspired the anti-war novel 'Mačak pod šljemom' (Tomcat under a Helmet, 1962), adapted both into a feature film and a miniseries. The screenplay 'Ciguli Miguli' (1952), critical of dogmatism and bureaucracy, briefly brought him into disfavor with the Communist party authorities, on which occasion he turned to sailing.

In mid-1960s Horvat and his family sailed the world in the sailing yacht Besa, and his travel diary 'Besa – brodski dnevnik' (Besa–Ship's Log, 1973) became a bestseller. The second trip around the world was marked by tragedy: Horvat's older son, who stayed back, died in a traffic accident in 1973, and his younger son drowned in Venezuela in 1975.
After a period of deep crisis Horvat published two acclaimed novels inspired by these events, 'Operacija "Stonoga"' (Operation "Centipede", 1982), about a search for a lost island in the Atlantic, and 'Waitapu' (1984), about a Pacific Islander boy who decides to sail across a taboo line. Horvat's last work is a memoir titled 'Svjedok prolaznosti' (A Witness to Impermanence, 2005).

He attended the Faculty of Philosophy in Zagreb and served as a secretary of Matrix Croatica.

Many of novels, short stories, dramas, screenplays, essays and radio dramas and have been translated into at least nine languages, including Russian, Chinese and Esperanto.

He died at the age of 97 in Zagreb, Croatia.

Reviews

[Jelena SM]

Prvi put kad sam ovo pročitala mislim da sam bila osnovnoškolka. Nije mi se zadržalo puno u sjećanju, ali ostao je osjećaj; knjiga je bila čarolija, more, toplina.
Uvijek se s malom dozom oklijevanja vraćam knjigama koje za sobom ostave takve tragove.
Nakon ponovnog čitanja sve se vratilo, jedino sam imala dojam da je nekako prebrzo završilo.
Bajkovita i odvažna, pogurne te tako da ovog trena poželiš dići sidro i zaploviti nemirnijim morima.
Sretna sam i zahvalna što je Joža, unatoč svemu što ga je u životu snašlo, odlučio podijeliti s nama dio sebe i svog sina.

[Anica]

Kad sam morala pročitati knjigu za lektiru u osnovnoj, bila mi je dosadna. No, kad sam ju pročitala 10 godina poslije - jedna od najboljih knjiga koje su mi došle u ruku!
Odlična alegorija o tome kako se treba boriti za sebe i za svoje ciljeve ma koliko nam se oni činili nemogućima i nedostižnima!!!

[Margarita Bulgakova]

"Da ljudi nisu prelazili crtu, gdje bismo mi još bili, moj Iteo!"

[Matej]

„Oko nas svuda su crte, svuda su zapreke i zabrani. Da poludiš! Kao obruči, sa svih nas strana stežu zakoni, a život se ne može razvijati, ljudsko društvo ne može napredovati ako se ne brišu crte, ako se ne mijenjaju zakoni! Da ljudi nisu prelazili crtu, gdje bismo mi još bili, moj Iteo!“

[Klara Ferega]

"Crta je zabran,crta je prokletstvo", citat je koji pamtim još od djetinjstva. Iako sam ju čitala kao lektiru oduševila me na mnogo različitih načina.

[Jana Rađa]

My son had to read Joža Horvat's Waitapu for school. As soon as he told me that he had to read it, I had a flashing memory of my primary school. I remembered, vaguely, something about ants, ie, people who are unwilling to step outside an imagined circle fencing them in, settling for a lesser, although safer, life. I remembered how the book was about having the tenacity to ask questions, to overcome barriers, to fight for one's freedom.

So, as soon as he finished it, I took the book and I read it again, on the train, on our way to Vienna for the Easter weekend.

It is a wonderful book by a father coming to terms with the death of his two sons. There is no way of reading this book, as an adult and a parent, without being aware, all the time, of Joža Horvat's tragic losses, although they are unmentioned. The grown-up in me could delve deeper, analyse, discuss, but I choose not to. The book stands the test of time. I liked it a lot, all over again.

[Valentina Markasović]

I remember having to analyse this book for school and I'm surprised at how much I still ended up liking this short novel.

[Jurica Ranj]

Sunce, more i sloboda :)

[Chuspu]

My favorite

[Marie Debelic]

Labave 4 zvjezdice,nije mi knjiga u cjelini bila zanimljiva jer ja iskreno preferiram romantiku od svega.Ali kraj napokon je iteo i dosao do Hine i to me razveselilo

[Gaunter O'Dimm]

Jedna od omiljenih mi knjiga iz djetinjstva kojoj se uvijek volim vraćat.

[majstoricamagije]

Exceptional, heartwarming story, to which I have returned several times. Another great piece of work by Croatian writers for children and young people.

[Hana]

Another one I had to read for school. I REALLY liked it. :)

[Pokrajispod]

Brilliant book.