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Meaning & History
From the Finnish fairy tale Pessi and Illusia by Yrjo Kokko, published in 1944. Pessi is a little hobgoblin boy whose name should be Pessimist like his father's but he was very small so his name had to be shortened. His family is proud of their practical and sensible attitude to life. Illusia is a little fairy girl whose father is Mr. Illusioni, a famous visionary living on a rainbow. The fairy Illusia and the goblin Pessi meet and the story begins. The book is a classic of Finnish children’s literature.