Argonauti: pričanja siromašnih ljudi

The work belongs to the socially engaged prose of the interwar period and thematically continues the tradition of depicting the lives of the poor and disenfranchised. The book follows the fates of two friends – Dominik Vrabec and Martin Mak – who represent the archetype of modern “argonauts”: people who sail through life in search of a better tomorrow, but mostly encounter misery, unemployment and social indifference. Through their experiences, Batušić realistically depicts the everyday life of a common man in the Croatian town and village of the 1930s – hunger, humiliation, lack of prospects and the struggle for dignity.

The style is lively, narrative and slightly lyrical, with elements of humor and irony with which the author softens the gravity of the theme. In contrast to harsh naturalism, Batušić shows compassion and warmth towards his heroes, emphasizing their humanity in the midst of difficult circumstances. The work belongs to the social-realist line of Croatian prose, and critics have ranked him alongside authors such as Slavko Kolar or Ivan Dončević.

In the context of Batušić's oeuvre (which includes travelogues, poetry, short stories, and theater studies), Argonauts represents his most significant prose work with social themes. Today, the work is valued as an authentic testimony to interwar misery and as a rare antiquarian edition of the Matica Hrvatska.