Ivan Kušan (30 August 1933 – 20 November 2012) was a

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

n writer. Kušan was born in

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see names in other languages'') is the capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its administrative limits. The Sarajevo metropolitan area including Sarajevo ...

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 ...

to the family of Jakša Kušan, a bookstore owner. The family moved to

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital and largest city of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb stands near the international border between Croatia and Slov ...

in 1939. At the age of ten Ivan discovered his writing talent and wrote his first novel. Later, Kušan discovered a taste for world travel and visual arts. In the 1950s he worked on Radio Zagreb. From 1980 to 1994 he taught at the Drama Arts Academy of

University of Zagreb The University of Zagreb ( hr, Sveučilište u Zagrebu, ; la, Universitas Studiorum Zagrabiensis) is the largest Croatian university and the oldest continuously operating university in the area covering Central Europe south of Vienna and all of ...

. He published his first book in 1956. His specialty became children's novels, and some of them, like ''Lažeš, Melita'' and ''Koko u Parizu'', became very popular. In the later stages of his writing career, Kušan found a taste for erotic fiction. He also wrote a novel about famous outlaw Jovo Stanisavljević Čaruga, later adapted into 1991 motion picture.

Personal life

Kušan was married twice and had one son from his first marriage. He had several strokes from which he never recovered, which ultimately led to his death in Zagreb,

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

on 20 November 2012.

Books by Ivan Kušan

Kušan published four

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

collections and fifteen novels, but he is best known for his children books. He wrote one short story collection, ''Strašni kauboj'' consisting of 30 stories usually 5-10 pages long. Other children books are eight novels. These are in

chronological order Chronology (from Latin ''chronologia'', from Ancient Greek , ''chrónos'', "time"; and , ''-logia'') is the science of arranging events in their order of occurrence in time. Consider, for example, the use of a timeline or sequence of events. It ...

: ''Uzbuna na Zelenom Vrhu'', ''Koko i duhovi'', ''Domaća zadaća'', ''Zagonetni dječak'', ''Lažeš, Melita'', ''Koko u Parizu'', ''Ljubav ili smrt'' and ''Koko u Kninu''. His most famous book is ''Koko u Parizu''. It has been adapted for a

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

play Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * P ...

and a film.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kusan, Ivan 1933 births 2012 deaths Writers from Sarajevo Croat writers from Bosnia and Herzegovina Croatian children's writers Vladimir Nazor Award winners Members of the Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts Burials at Mirogoj Cemetery