Alenka Glazer (1926–2020)

The 10ᵗʰ volume of the collection Osebnosti (Personalities) focuses on the life, work, and legacy of Alenka Glazer. It presents her rich and compelling life story – the story of a poet, translator, editor, literary historian, and legendary literature professor who taught generations of students at the then Pedagogical Academy in Maribor, which later became the Faculty of Education. The focus is on her research and scholarly work, as well as on her contribution to the development of the theory of children’s and young adult literature as an integral part of literary studies. Her work laid the foundations for the academic study of children’s and young adult literature in Slovenia.

Additionally, Alenka Glazer prepared the study Župančič’s Poetry for Young Readers with Consideration of Its Place in the Development of Slovenian Youth Poetry and Its Relationship to Župančič’s Other Poems, which she submitted as a doctoral dissertation, although it was never formally defended. A facsimile of the dissertation is included in the volume.

The publication explores different stages of Alenka Glazer’s life. It encompasses the years during the Second World War, when, as a young girl, she was exiled to Serbia along with her family, as well as the post-war years, her academic journey, and her active work not only as a professor, but also as a poet. The text is accompanied by portraits of Alenka Glazer from different periods of her life and concludes with her son’s commemorative text, Legacy as a Reflection of Personality.