Vlak u snijegu facts for kids
Vlak u snijegu (English: A Train in the Snow) is a popular children's book. It was first called Djeca Velikog Sela (which means "The Children of Veliko Selo"). A Croatian writer named Mato Lovrak (1899–1974) wrote it in 1931. He was a young schoolteacher at the time and got the idea from real events.
This book has been translated into many languages. You can read it in German, Hungarian, Polish, Macedonian, Czech, and Slovenian.
The Story
The story is about fourth-grade students from a village called "Jabukovac." Their teacher suggests they start a club. They decide to go on a field trip to a nearby town.
In the town, they visit a chocolate factory and eat lots of chocolate. Later, they spend the evening watching a movie. When it's time to go home, their teacher gets sick. He has to stay in the hospital.
The children have to travel back to their village all by themselves. But then, something exciting happens! The train gets stuck in a huge snowdrift. With the children's help, the railroad workers manage to clear the snow. They work together to get the train moving again.
The Movie Version
In 1976, Vlak u snijegu was made into a children's movie. Mate Relja directed the film and also wrote the script. He changed some parts of the story for the movie.
In the film, the children travel to Zagreb, the capital city. They visit famous places like the Upper Town, the National Theatre, and the Zoo. They even see a printing press!
The movie was first shown in Bjelovar on June 10, 1976. It won an award called Jelen at the Pula Film Festival that same year. The film has been shown in 30 different countries around the world.
The movie was filmed in Zagreb and near Bjelovar. Some scenes were shot in the villages of Ciglena, Tomaš, and Grginac. Many of the child actors came from Ciglena.
Another book by Mato Lovrak, called Družba Pere Kvržice ("Pero Kvržica's Gang"), was also made into a movie.
Who Played Who?
The main actors in the film were:
- Slavko Štimac played Ljuban.
- Gordana Inkret played Draga.
- Željko Malčić played Pero.
Both Gordana and Željko were students from the "Franko Vinter" Elementary school in Bjelovar.
The Trains in the Story
You can see a copy of the train from the movie at the Lovrak center in Veliki Grđevac. This center is named after the author, Mato Lovrak.
The train line between Bjelovar and Kloštar Podravski is now also named after Mato Lovrak.
The Awesome Theme Song
The movie has a famous theme song called "Kad se male ruke slože." This means "When little hands join together." The popular singer Arsen Dedić wrote the music.
The song is all about friendship and working together. Drago Britvić wrote the lyrics, which start like this:
"Kad se mnogo malih složi,
"Ta se snaga stoput množi,
"A to znači da smo jači,
"Kad se skupimo u roj.
"Mala iskra požar skriva,
"Kap po kap i rijeka biva.
"Hajde zato svi u jato,
"Kao vrapci živ, živ, živ."
The chorus is: "Kad se male ruke slože, sve se može, sve se može." This means: "When little hands join together, anything is possible, anything is possible."
