Only one day left until Christmas, so there is still some time to get the missing Christmas presents.
As ideas, here are five Hungarian books in English for bookworms đ .
ZSIGMOND MĂRICZ â GOLD IN THE MUD: A HUNGARIAN PEASANT NOVEL
MĂłricz (1879-1942) was one of the most notable writers of the 20th century. He wrote men cult novels (Relations, Very Merry, Be Faithful Unto Death) which are still compulsory or at least recommended reads in Hungarian schools. His novels mainly introduce life in rural Hungary through complex characters and riveting narratives. This time, we recommend one of his early novels, Gold in the Mud: A Hungarian Peasant Novel, from 1910. The story is about Dani Turi, the peasant Don Juan and leader of Kiskara village, who wants to rise from his low social class, and he is willing to do whatever it takes to do so.
SĂNDOR PETĆFI â JOHN THE VALIANT
PetĆfi (1823-1849) was one of the most influential poets and revolutionaries of the 19th century, who wrote almost a thousand poems during his short life. He presumably died during the Hungarian Revolution of 1848, although the circumstances of his death are still not clear to this day. He wrote many extraordinary poems like the âBefordultam a konyhĂĄraâ (âI Turned into the Kitchenâ) or the âNemzeti dalâ (âNational Songâ). However, his most memorable poem is todayâs suggestion, âJohn The Valiantâ, known as âJĂĄnos VitĂ©zâ in Hungarian. The plot is about the adventures of the young shepherd, Johnny Grain oâ Corn, who is searching for his true love, Iluska (Nelly). Before finding her, he has to fight his way across land and sea, Turks, bandits, even giants.
KĂLMĂN MIKSZĂTH â SAINT PETERâS UMBRELLA
MikszĂĄth (1847-1910) was a Hungarian writer, journalist and editor. He is well-known for his unique narrative, as well as his stories about the life of peasants, also known as PalĂłc people, in Northern Hungary where he was born as well. The story of A jĂł palĂłcok (The Good People of Palocz) celebrates the territory and people living there. He wrote as if he were speaking with somebody. Undoubtedly, his most famous book is Szent PĂ©ter EsernyĆje (Saint Peterâs Umbrella, 1895), a novel about Hungarian peasantry also living in the underdeveloped upper region. The novel is set in Glogova, a fictional village in PalĂłc land, not identical with Glogova in Romania. The story is told through two storylines, one of the priests of Glogova, JĂĄnos BĂ©lyi and his sister, Veronka; and the other about the secret of the red umbrella, PĂĄl Gregorich and his illegitimate son, Gyuri Wibra.
SĂNDOR MĂRAI â THE REBELS
MĂĄraiâs life is surely the most adventurous among the members of Hungarian writers. He became famous quite young, and he worked as a writer and journalist as well. He emigrated from Hungary in 1948 because he was against Bolshevism. His works were gradually and intentionally removed from the Hungarian literary scene due to his departure to the United States. He was the representative of the Hungarian civilians, and he wrote mainly about the classic notions of his class. ZendĂŒlĆk (The Rebels) is one of his early works about a group of alienated boys on the verge of becoming adults. It takes place in 1918 in a town which is not directly involved in World War I., but the absence of the boysâ fathers indirectly affects the whole plot. Their life takes a serious turn when they meet an actor with a travelling theatre company, who will make them perform in one of his plays.
ĂVA JANIKOVSZKY â IF I WERE A GROWN-UP
Jankovszky is known for writing stories to children, but her books have morals for adults as well. If I were a Grown-up is her most famous book. Her works have been translated into 35 languages. âEvery child knows, even the smallest, that being naughty is much more fun than being good. Being good all the time is very boring, not only that, itâs tiring too,â says the summary of Bookline.hu about our suggestion. You can get a copy of the book on the link as well.
ALBERT-LĂSZLĂ BARABĂSI â THE FORMULA
Our +1 suggestion is the recent book by Albert-LĂĄszlĂł BarabĂĄsi, The Formula. He is an ethnic Hungarian physicist born in Romania, Harghita County. He is most notable for his work in the development of network science. The book is about a scientific approach to oneâs success or failure assisted by years of academic research. âThis is not just an important but an imperative project: to approach the problem of randomness and success using the state of the art scientific arsenal we have. Barabasi is the person.â Nassim Nicholas Taleb, the author of the New York Times bestselling The Black Swan, says about BarabĂĄsiâs book. BarabĂĄsi introduces how the members of our success-oriented society approach their goals, careers and much more.
Source: dailynewshungary.com
Photo: pixabay.hu
