Do You Have a Special Umbrella,too?

When it's pouring rain outside and the raindrops are dancing on the windows, there's nothing better than wrapping up in a blanket and picking up a good book. Have you heard the story My Umbrella Can Turn Into a Balloon?

No, it's not about a new technological innovation, it's a wonderful fairy tale from childhood! If you haven't got a copy – or can’t borrow one from a child – now is the perfect time to look for one!

The Queen of Children's Imagination

Ela Peroci (1922-2001) was just that. In her works you will meet a Slovenian children’s writer who proved with her stories that ordinary objects contain magic.

Her heroes are not superheroes, but they have incredible adventures.

Do you remember the Slipper Keeper Kitty (Muca Copatarica), who takes care of slippers more diligently than many a mother? Or The Fairy Hat (Pravljični klobuk), about a special hat which surely had more functions than today's smartphones?

And the story My Umbrella Can Turn Into a Balloon (Moj dežnik je lahko balon) is magical, too. It was born out of a simple question: “What if an umbrella could fly?” It was first published in 1955.

Her ability to observe everyday moments and children's play often served as the foundation for her fairy tales, making her stories warm, magical, and close to a child's imagination. Photo: wikipedia
One of the puppet performances was also in Puppet theatre Fru Fru. Photo: Žiga Koritnik

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The Land of Hats– where anything is possible!

The main character, Jelka, receives a red umbrella for her birthday. But this is no ordinary umbrella – it's a special flying umbrella! When she opens it, she finds herself flying high above the city, with birds keeping her company.

She lands in the mysterious Land of Hats, where you can become anything you want – a captain, a ballerina, a pilot or even someone who knows everything! (And who wouldn't want that?)

Jelka didn't let anyone persuade her that she needed a new hat – her umbrella was special enough! However, she did take home a few hats for her family. And who would have thought – these hats had incredible powers! Mum became a supermother, granddad became a general, grandma became young again, dad got a professor's degree and her aunt suddenly became a film star! Her younger sister Anka became....What do you think?

Ela Peroci found the inspiration for the story My Umbrella Can Turn in a Balloon because of her daughter. While watching her play with an umbrella one day, she imagined how it could lift a child high into the sky like a balloon. This simple childhood fantasy inspired her to create the story of a girl named Jelka, who flies into a world of imagination with her umbrella. Photo: Illustration by Marlenka Stupica (1927 - 2022)

A pinch of magic

Life is so much more fun when you believe in a little magic! And also, that we don't always have to follow the crowd – sometimes it's better to keep your own special umbrella and go on your own adventure.