Books and music
A few days back I discussed a Hungarian writer with a friend, and mentioned to her how sorry I was that there existed no English version of his works that could be pimped out to the wider world. I was wrong. I've found by accident a full text translation of one of his best novels, so allow me to share! :)
About the author:
Jenő Rejtő was a Hungarian author, science fiction writer, playwright and journalist, who died as a forced labourer during World War II. He got famous by his adventure novels, mostly about the French Foreign Legion, raised above the mediocre by his inimitable, bizarre sense of humour. If you want academic discussions, avoid him. If you don't want to laugh out loud on public transportation, avoid him.
He has a pretty widespread cult here. Generations can answer questions like "How does one cross the desert with a bucket?" or can be heard saying "A gentleman even in hell remains a gentleman." His unforgettable characters ensure that if you mention Dirty Fred or the Great Levine, faces will brighten up in an instant. If you like adventure with a dose of humour and enjoy an absolutely crazy rollercoster ride, I suggest you read this short novel.
The 14-Carat Roadster (PDF)
Excerpt: "Ivan Gorchev, sailor on the freight ship ‘Rangoon’, was not yet twenty-one when he won the Nobel Prize in physics. To win a scientific award at such a romantically young age is unprecedented, though some people might consider the means by which it was achieved a flaw. For Ivan Gorchev won the Nobel Prize in physics in a card game, called macao, from a Professor Bertinus, on whom the honour had been bestowed in Stockholm by the King of Sweden a few days earlier. But those who are always finding fault don’t like to face facts, and the fact of the matter is that Ivan Gorchev did win the Nobel Prize at the age of twenty-one.
Professor Bertinus, with the Nobel Prize in his briefcase, had boarded ship in Göteborg, and before the ship sailed, the Swedish Franklin Society assembled on deck to present him with the big gold medal for his successful experiments in the splitting of the atom. The ship then departed, and the worthy professor was all impatience to arrive in Bordeaux, where he owned a few acres of vintage, as elderly French civil servants generally did, from the executioner’s assistant, to the director of the museum.
Ivan Gorchev, on the other hand, boarded ship in Southampton, to cross the Channel for reasons unknown even to himself. It’s true that he had been fired from a freight ship (the Rangoon) because he had used a four-pointed boat hook to beat up the navigator. But as to why anyone who had beaten up a navigator and been fired from a freight ship would want to cross the Channel, we do not understand any more than so many of our hero’s actions."
1. Reply to this post saying you want to do the meme and I'll assign you a letter.
2. List 5 songs (with links to them, if you can find them) that start with that letter.
3. Post them to your journal with these instructions.
I got an M from
white_jenna and an S from sildil
1. Matchbook Romance - Monsters
2. Tom McRae - Mermaid Blues
3. The Cardigans - Mr. Crowley
4. Sevendust - My Ruin
5. Killswitch Engage - My Last Serenade
1. Evans Blue - Shine Your Cadillac
2. Adema - Shoot The Arrows
3. Blacq Audio - Stiff Kittens
4. The All-American Rejects - Straightjacket Feeling
5. Hurt - Sweet Delilah
Bonus tracks:
Lacrimas Profundere - My Velvet Little Darkness
Johnny McGovern (Gay Pimp) - Soccer Practice
You can download the zip file with all songs HERE.
The selection is a bit off, since a good 8GB of my music was lost the last time my laptop crashed. Still, enjoy. :)
About the author:
Jenő Rejtő was a Hungarian author, science fiction writer, playwright and journalist, who died as a forced labourer during World War II. He got famous by his adventure novels, mostly about the French Foreign Legion, raised above the mediocre by his inimitable, bizarre sense of humour. If you want academic discussions, avoid him. If you don't want to laugh out loud on public transportation, avoid him.
He has a pretty widespread cult here. Generations can answer questions like "How does one cross the desert with a bucket?" or can be heard saying "A gentleman even in hell remains a gentleman." His unforgettable characters ensure that if you mention Dirty Fred or the Great Levine, faces will brighten up in an instant. If you like adventure with a dose of humour and enjoy an absolutely crazy rollercoster ride, I suggest you read this short novel.
The 14-Carat Roadster (PDF)
Excerpt: "Ivan Gorchev, sailor on the freight ship ‘Rangoon’, was not yet twenty-one when he won the Nobel Prize in physics. To win a scientific award at such a romantically young age is unprecedented, though some people might consider the means by which it was achieved a flaw. For Ivan Gorchev won the Nobel Prize in physics in a card game, called macao, from a Professor Bertinus, on whom the honour had been bestowed in Stockholm by the King of Sweden a few days earlier. But those who are always finding fault don’t like to face facts, and the fact of the matter is that Ivan Gorchev did win the Nobel Prize at the age of twenty-one.
Professor Bertinus, with the Nobel Prize in his briefcase, had boarded ship in Göteborg, and before the ship sailed, the Swedish Franklin Society assembled on deck to present him with the big gold medal for his successful experiments in the splitting of the atom. The ship then departed, and the worthy professor was all impatience to arrive in Bordeaux, where he owned a few acres of vintage, as elderly French civil servants generally did, from the executioner’s assistant, to the director of the museum.
Ivan Gorchev, on the other hand, boarded ship in Southampton, to cross the Channel for reasons unknown even to himself. It’s true that he had been fired from a freight ship (the Rangoon) because he had used a four-pointed boat hook to beat up the navigator. But as to why anyone who had beaten up a navigator and been fired from a freight ship would want to cross the Channel, we do not understand any more than so many of our hero’s actions."
1. Reply to this post saying you want to do the meme and I'll assign you a letter.
2. List 5 songs (with links to them, if you can find them) that start with that letter.
3. Post them to your journal with these instructions.
I got an M from
white_jenna and an S from sildil
1. Matchbook Romance - Monsters
2. Tom McRae - Mermaid Blues
3. The Cardigans - Mr. Crowley
4. Sevendust - My Ruin
5. Killswitch Engage - My Last Serenade
1. Evans Blue - Shine Your Cadillac
2. Adema - Shoot The Arrows
3. Blacq Audio - Stiff Kittens
4. The All-American Rejects - Straightjacket Feeling
5. Hurt - Sweet Delilah
Bonus tracks:
Lacrimas Profundere - My Velvet Little Darkness
Johnny McGovern (Gay Pimp) - Soccer Practice
You can download the zip file with all songs HERE.
The selection is a bit off, since a good 8GB of my music was lost the last time my laptop crashed. Still, enjoy. :)