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More One Minute Stories
[From the back of the book] “A one minute story by Örkény is an enigmatic something. It is not just short prose, it is a combination of many things, anecdote… short note, found object, tale, joke, parable, a little of everything.” / “Örkeny does not tell it, he comes out and says it. What he writes is philosophy, but it is not abstract. It is witty, but not convivial. Keen, unsparing, brutal – poetic. Wry, elegant, consistent – in short, Hungarian” / “From time to time, the one minute stories resemble post-Auschwitz poems that can’t be written” /// More One Minute Stories / Classic Hungarian Literature in English Language /// This is a great Christian product sourced from BIML- Bible In My Language, the leader in foreign language Bibles and outreach materials from Baltimore, Maryland in the USA. BIML stocks Bibles in more than 600 languages.
208 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2006
8 people are currently reading
135 people want to read
About the author
István Örkény
76 books75 followersIstván Örkény was a Hungarian writer. A typical feature of his plays and novels is satiric view and creation of grotesque situations.
Born in Budapest, the son of a pharmacist, Örkény studied chemical engineering after leaving school and then turned to pharmacy, graduating from Budapest University in 1934. He travelled to London in 1938 and lived in Paris from casual work in 1939. In 1940, he continued his studies at Budapest Technical University, where he graduated in chemical engineering. He was sent to the front on labour service in 1942 and taken prisoner of war in 1943. On his return to Hungary in 1946, he worked as a drama editor for a theatre company. In 1954, he began working as an outside editor for the Szépirodalmi (Literary) publishing company. Although Örkény attempted to meet the requirements of the officially sanctioned Socialist Realism, his short story 'Violet Ink' was attacked by the ideologue József Révai. Örkény took part in the opposition meetings of writers. On September 17, 1956, at the general assembly of the Writers' Union where the first secret elections were held since 1948, Örkény was among the party and non-party opposition writers elected onto a new board. When the revolution broke out, he phrased a statement condemning the role hitherto played by the radio, in which the following sentence became a household word: 'We have lied by night, we have lied by day, we have lied on every wavelength.' He took part in workers' council meetings with Tibor Déry. On November 10, he and fellow writers Déry, Gyula Illyés, László Benjámin and Zoltán Zelk sought asylum at the Polish Embassy in Budapest, but they were only offered temporary refuge and left the building after a few hours. As a member and interpreter for the Writers' Union delegation, he met with K.P.S. Menon, the Indian ambassador in Budapest, whom they sought as an intermediary between Hungary and the Soviet Union. He and five associates signed an open letter of self-criticism, which appeared in September 1957, in the first issue of the literary journal Kortárs (Contemporary), covering their conduct before and during the revolution. However, he was squeezed out of the literary scene in 1957 and subjected to several publication bans. Örkény worked from 1958 to 1963 at the United Pharmaceutical and Nutriment Factory. In the second half of the 1960s, his books were allowed to appear again and his plays were performed. In 1966, his book The Princess of Jerusalem appeared, including his first cycle of 'one-minute' stories and his novella 'Cat's Play'. His absurd drama The Tót Family was a huge success in 1967.
Born in Budapest, the son of a pharmacist, Örkény studied chemical engineering after leaving school and then turned to pharmacy, graduating from Budapest University in 1934. He travelled to London in 1938 and lived in Paris from casual work in 1939. In 1940, he continued his studies at Budapest Technical University, where he graduated in chemical engineering. He was sent to the front on labour service in 1942 and taken prisoner of war in 1943. On his return to Hungary in 1946, he worked as a drama editor for a theatre company. In 1954, he began working as an outside editor for the Szépirodalmi (Literary) publishing company. Although Örkény attempted to meet the requirements of the officially sanctioned Socialist Realism, his short story 'Violet Ink' was attacked by the ideologue József Révai. Örkény took part in the opposition meetings of writers. On September 17, 1956, at the general assembly of the Writers' Union where the first secret elections were held since 1948, Örkény was among the party and non-party opposition writers elected onto a new board. When the revolution broke out, he phrased a statement condemning the role hitherto played by the radio, in which the following sentence became a household word: 'We have lied by night, we have lied by day, we have lied on every wavelength.' He took part in workers' council meetings with Tibor Déry. On November 10, he and fellow writers Déry, Gyula Illyés, László Benjámin and Zoltán Zelk sought asylum at the Polish Embassy in Budapest, but they were only offered temporary refuge and left the building after a few hours. As a member and interpreter for the Writers' Union delegation, he met with K.P.S. Menon, the Indian ambassador in Budapest, whom they sought as an intermediary between Hungary and the Soviet Union. He and five associates signed an open letter of self-criticism, which appeared in September 1957, in the first issue of the literary journal Kortárs (Contemporary), covering their conduct before and during the revolution. However, he was squeezed out of the literary scene in 1957 and subjected to several publication bans. Örkény worked from 1958 to 1963 at the United Pharmaceutical and Nutriment Factory. In the second half of the 1960s, his books were allowed to appear again and his plays were performed. In 1966, his book The Princess of Jerusalem appeared, including his first cycle of 'one-minute' stories and his novella 'Cat's Play'. His absurd drama The Tót Family was a huge success in 1967.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
May 5, 2016
Wacky and fun. A great way to pick up knowledge re: mainstream (and not so mainstream) Hungarian cultural and historical references. Reminds me a little of the Urdu short story writer Saadat Hasan Manto in style. This is a book that I will come back to again and again. Not many people can write stories that are so short in an engaging manner and not many stories translate into English with such hilarity!
July 12, 2017
I really loved this book!
Some stories are hilarious and some others are bitter, some others are completly nonsense.
I am glad my friend offered me this book, so I could get to know one more (excellent) Hungarian writer :-)
Some stories are hilarious and some others are bitter, some others are completly nonsense.
I am glad my friend offered me this book, so I could get to know one more (excellent) Hungarian writer :-)
June 29, 2021
Nothing makes gallows absurdist humor more absurd than typos and untranslated words. Typos, and even confused grammar, are a non-issue in most cases. However, when I'm already engaging with a society I can't appreciate parody of (I know basically nothing about 20th century Hungary) in a style that requires bullseye precision (short sentences in even shorter stories), I loose faith that I'm able to parse the joke when "caffeine" isn't translated from "coffein." Needless to say I feel a great deal was lost on me, especially given the lack of a translator's introduction and the unhelpfulness of Péter Esterházy's preface in situating or explicating Örkény's work.
Overall I enjoyed More One Minute Stories though. Among 94 stories there's bound to be a few clever, memorable, and inventive ones. Örkény's writing has that blend of wry hopelessness and morbid cheek that feels natural to Central/Eastern Europe's 20th century, from stories about tulips committing suicide to a man held at gunpoint calling his doctor to ask if his health warrants dying this quick and painless way or resisting his own murder. You have your stories about Soviet bureaucracy ("triplets in obuda") which feel painfully dated both as a joke and as a critique. Your hopeless stories told as surreal parables about a patriarch whose attempt to get salt at the dinner table turns into an Epic Jack London-ish sled dog adventure ("aiming for the salt cellar").
You even have an "empty page" with an explanatory footnote: "These 'empty pages' are about nonexistent things or else things that exist, but about which the author has nothing to say." A snarky commentary on censorship and a paradox - it's not actually empty, given the footnote.
In the end I think it's made me more curious about Hungary's history than its literature, which is arguably a win if not the intended takeaway. Perhaps the best summation of Örkény's stories is the Note at the end of "meat loaf," a one sentence recipe for making meat loaf. "For us mammals, it is not inconsequential whether we grind the meat, or we end up in the grinder ourselves."
Overall I enjoyed More One Minute Stories though. Among 94 stories there's bound to be a few clever, memorable, and inventive ones. Örkény's writing has that blend of wry hopelessness and morbid cheek that feels natural to Central/Eastern Europe's 20th century, from stories about tulips committing suicide to a man held at gunpoint calling his doctor to ask if his health warrants dying this quick and painless way or resisting his own murder. You have your stories about Soviet bureaucracy ("triplets in obuda") which feel painfully dated both as a joke and as a critique. Your hopeless stories told as surreal parables about a patriarch whose attempt to get salt at the dinner table turns into an Epic Jack London-ish sled dog adventure ("aiming for the salt cellar").
You even have an "empty page" with an explanatory footnote: "These 'empty pages' are about nonexistent things or else things that exist, but about which the author has nothing to say." A snarky commentary on censorship and a paradox - it's not actually empty, given the footnote.
In the end I think it's made me more curious about Hungary's history than its literature, which is arguably a win if not the intended takeaway. Perhaps the best summation of Örkény's stories is the Note at the end of "meat loaf," a one sentence recipe for making meat loaf. "For us mammals, it is not inconsequential whether we grind the meat, or we end up in the grinder ourselves."
September 24, 2023
I'm still not sure how to feel about this book. Amused, bewildered, enlightened? Each "story" is about 1-2 pages long that can literally be read in about a minute. Some are comedic, some are sad, some are bizarre. But altogether they are so addictive. I sped through this whole book in just a few days, reading several stories each night, or one or two during a lull.
Highly recommended for anyone looking for something quite unique.
Highly recommended for anyone looking for something quite unique.
September 8, 2024
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Obuda triplets was my favorite story that actually made me laugh. Although some passages were to the utmost nonsense, most stories were so hilariously random and silly. The perfect light read that took less than 2 days of my time to read. I would read again. The line, "his forehead could have stopped a locomotive" is most noteworthy.
April 21, 2019
Some revelations, some good imagery, some will be remembered. A bit too (depressingly) Hungarian but then what should one expect? Think I will look out for the first edition of "One Minute Stories" - the one before this selection, whether the translation will be equal us another matter.
September 15, 2022
Favourites included: aiming for the salt cellar, ballad about the magic of poetry, I buy my book, what is art?, triplets in óbuda, perpetuum mobile, home sweet home, and survival. I wish there was a capital letter within all of those titles.
September 22, 2018
It wasn't good enough . I quit the book in the middle because it was too hazy and nonesense.
February 25, 2016
A wonderful collection of well-written prose and various tidbits of knowledge. After living in Hungary for 6 months and getting to know the culture and the people, I can definitely attest that it is very Hungarian, indeed, in its presentation of topics and views.
My favorites were "thoughts from the cellar," "hidden talent," "what is art?" and "triplets in óbuda."
My favorites were "thoughts from the cellar," "hidden talent," "what is art?" and "triplets in óbuda."
November 8, 2014
Örkény's work is obviously an acquired taste. A little too bitter for my palate.
May 7, 2017
Sharp, dazzling, brilliant.
November 6, 2015
It's cool mostly
April 7, 2017
great
September 21, 2018
Witty, dark, and inexplicably absurd.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews