MARIA KONOPNICKA

   Maria Konopnicka was a Polish poet, children's writer and activist for women's rights and for Polish independence. She used many pseudonyms, including Jan Sawa. She made her debut as a writer in 1870 with the poem "W zimowy poranek" (Eng. On a Winter's Morning). Her most famous pieces of children's literature include "O krasonoludkach i sierotce Marysi" (Eng. Little Orphan Mary and the Gnomes), "Co słonko widziało" (Eng. What the sun has seen) or "O Janku wędrowniczku" (Eng. About Janek the wanderer).

   When I was a child my mum bought me the poem "Na jagody" (Eng. For blueberries). The book became one of my favorites but unfortunately it did not survive my great interest. Some time ago I decided to look  in antique shops for the edition I had with illustrations by Anna Stylo-Ginter. It took me a while but finally I found the book in quite a good condition. The poem is about a little boy, who wanted to gather some blueberries in the forest for his mum. He couldn't find any fruits and decided to rest on a tree-trunk. He then saw the Blueberry King who invited him to his house. Janek met there seven blueberry brothers who helped him to gather a basket full of blueberries. Then they visited Mrs. Governess and her five bilberry maids. The girls helped Janek to gather a basket full of red bilberries. After this he woke up on the tree-trunk and noticed that both his baskets were full of berries. He wasn't sure if his extraordinary adventure was real or just a dream.

"Na jagody" by Maria Konopnicka

     The other book that I have with poems by Maria Konopnicka is "Moja Książeczka" (Eng. My book). It is a reprint of the first edition from 1891. The book has wonderful illustrations by Harriet Bennett. It is a collection of short poems about little children.

"Moja książeczka" by Maria Konopnicka