Stephen Sisa

If you want to know anything at all about Hungary’s history, "The Spirit of Hungary" is the book for you. Starting with the year 670 AD, the Magyars were recorded to have arrived at the base of the Carpathian Mountains, making it their permanent home.

Tracing the Magyar’s history in culture, size, and power, the book describes every struggle, with a total that far outnumbers the battles and opponents of most other nations. They competed with Genghis Khan and the Mongols, The Ottoman Empire and the Turks, the Habsburg Empire, Napoleon, The Romanians, the Germans, and the Russians. At times the content of the book was overwhelming.

The Magyar’s struggles included The Plague which wiped out one-third of their population, the Crusades, an earthquake and devastating fires. They spent decades as slaves to the Turks, battled genocide by the Romanians, and were embroiled in World War I and II. During Would War II - occupied by Nazi troops - they never gave up trying to outwit Hitler with the hopes of maintaining their independence if the war ever ended. And all this was to ultimately end in becoming a communist satellite of the USSR. The Magyars are however, a strong and resilient people. A revolution in 1989 freed them and it is a miracle that throughout history they kept their own cultural identity and today still have a country to call their own.

Stephen Sisa was born in Budapest in 1918 and after emigrating to the United States in 1951, he became an advocate for his countrymen stranded behind the Iron Curtain. He wrote editorials for the New York Times and other International papers, and wrote the first printing of "The Spirit of Hungary" in 1983. Expanded and updated, the current third edition concludes in 1990 when Hungary had their first freely-elected government.

"The Spirit of Hungary" includes hundreds of photos, stories of the country’s famous people, and short chapters on their architecture and language, music and the arts. The only thing lacking is human interest stories... anecdotes which could relieve the monotony of a thousand years of dry historical facts. As a historical reference, the book is excellent. But preparing for a first-time visit to Hungary and seeking insight into the current lifestyle and “spirit” of the people, my search must continue.… (plus d'informations)