Sablast od Cantervilla

The Canterville Ghost (1887) was published in Croatian translation as the fourth book of the first cycle of the Entertainment Library. Although the title highlights Wilde's most famous humorous-fantastic story, the book is actually a selection from various parts of his literary oeuvre and represents one of the earlier and most content-rich Croatian introductions to the work of the famous Irish writer.

The central place is occupied by the story The Canterville Ghost, a satirical story about the ghost of Sir Simon de Canterville who unsuccessfully tries to frighten the practical American family Otis. It is also included in the stories The Sphinx Without a Secret and The Fisherman and His Soul, as well as two of Wilde's most famous artistic fairy tales, The Nightingale and the Rose and The Happy Prince. These works are connected by fantastic elements, symbolism, moral questions and Wilde's characteristic irony.

The edition is particularly valuable for its Poems in Prose (The Artist, The Benefactor, The Disciple, The Master and The Care Home), short philosophical texts in which Wilde reflects on art, faith, human nature and social values ​​in a concise and parabolic manner. The book is further enriched by a presentation of the play Salome, Wilde's famous biblical tragedy, and a selection of aphorisms that bring the reader closer to his witty, paradoxical and aesthetic worldview.

Thanks to its diverse content, the 1913 edition represents a valuable document of the Croatian reception of Oscar Wilde and one of the first attempts to systematically present his literary work to the domestic audience. Today, it is interesting both as a literary and as a cultural and historical artifact of Croatian publishing from the beginning of the 20th century.