The Gipsy's Horse and Other Stories

About the Book

This volume is a collection of loosely inter-related short stories, divided into six main topics (chapters), and placed between a “Prologue” and an “Epilogue”: “People” (portraits of several out-of-the-ordinary individuals); “Animals” (governed by a motto borrowed from W. G. Sebald's book Austerlitz: “There is really no reason to suppose that lesser beings are devoid of sentient life”); “Opinions” (some of them rather profane, like “The ideal boss” or “What to do if your car has been stopped by the police?”, others more high-brow, reflecting thoughts inspired by a picture at an exhibition or an unusual theatrical experience); “Encounters with the Dead” (a series of imaginary “communication” in person, dreams and correspondence with several giants of world culture and science: Dostoyevsky, Socrates, Kafka, Gogol, Lobachevsky, Paganini, Aesop, La Rochefoucauld, Soren Kierkegaard and J. L. Borges ); “Tales of the Mundane” (the title of this chapter is a reference to one of the author’s favourite British TV serials, Tales of the Unexpected from back in the 80s); and “Very Personal” (a few love poems in prose).

Some of these verbal snap-shots are anecdotes taken from real life, others are the product of reflection and mind-games triggered both by curiosity about the world in general and the desire to find, notwithstanding all weaknesses and pitfalls of human nature, a few keys to its wonders.

The tone varies from self-irony, often with a touch of sarcasm, to healthy humour, loving anxiety and cautious optimism. This book is a light reading with deep meaning, aimed to entertain at any time and place, be it in the kitchen, in the bathroom, in bed, on the underground, in the park, in queues or waiting rooms, etc. It can be put down for shorter or longer breaks and picked up again even when one has but a few minutes to escape from the grip of daily routine, each time encouraged by the author's friendly wink, saying: “I know that you know that I know that you know, but let's have a look at it from my hill.” It may be an ideal gift for Christmas, retirement, a birthday, any anniversary or other family feasts, and may also prove useful as reading practice for those studying English as a foreign language.

About the Author

The author was born in Russia, grew up in Bulgaria, and has spent most of her adult life in Hungary. She attended the Eötvös Lóránt University in Budapest, where she studied Hungarian, Russian and English Philology. She also holds a Bsc (Hons) in Financial Services from the University of Manchester, and is associate of the Chartered Institute of Bankers, London. She has taught Russian and English as a foreign language to both children and adults, and is now working for a big commercial Hungarian bank.