Translation of Ukrainian Literature for Children
Once in a Strange, Faraway Forest
A whimsical tale for children
and their favourite adults
Yaroslav Stelmakh
Illustrations by Anatoliy Vasylenko
Translated by Roma Franko
Edited by Sonia Morris
© 2001 Language Lanterns Publications
We'd like to give you a taste of the story...
In the distant, mysterious jungles of Africa there once lived a lion called Tolyaboon. He was unhappy with everything. When the sun shone, he roared because he was hot; when it grew dark, he roared because he was cold; when his stomach was empty, he roared because he was hungry; and after he had eaten, he roared because he was stuffed. Everything in the world made him angry: the trees, the river, the birds, the moon, and even the animals. And because he roared loudly when he was angry, his roars were all you heard, day in and day out.
Everyone was terribly fed up with Tolyaboon, but everyone also feared him, so there was nothing that could be done about him. He gobbled up poor little animals without ever being punished, and eventually became so bold and brazen that he almost devoured a certain nature lover.
This nature lover, a traveller named Boortiyoos, had already explored most of the world, and now, flying in his dirigible balloon, he had come to Tolyaboon's jungle to find out everything he could about Africa. He tied up his flying balloon to a tree trunk, picked up two telescopes, three pairs of binoculars, a notebook, and a thermos filled with coffee, and set out, burning with desire to make great discoveries....
What do you think Boortiyoos discovered? It's a wonderful tale, and we're sure you'll love it!
Once in a Strange, Faraway Forest is a 96-page children's book written by Yaroslav Stelmakh and published in Ukraine in 1978. The 70+ original full-colour illustrations by Anatoliy Vasylenko, a popular illustrator of Ukrainian children's books, complement the text and reflect the humorous tone adopted by the author. The original illustrations were reproduced and enhanced by a designer in England, and the book is printed on sturdy high-quality paper.
Yaroslav Mykhaylovych Stelmakh was born in Kyiv in 1949. He graduated from the Pedagogical Institute for Foreign Languages in 1971, and earned a master's degree in Ukrainian at the University of Kyiv. He has worked as lecturer at both institutions, and has been a member of the Ukrainian Writers' Union since 1978. A playwright and author of several books for children, he has translated prose fiction from several languages into Ukrainian. His translations from English include the works of James Joyce.