Description

Memoir? Sketch of an era? Fragments of a family history? A novel of growth? It is almost impossible to categorize this beautiful writing by Benjamin Makovecz into any literature style. It certainly has a non-standard structure, drawing a picture of a gradually evolving and increasingly deep father and son relationship in the form of 101 footnotes, starting in the 1960s and ending with Imre Makovecz’s passing in 2011. The author’s viewpoint is that of a “Budapest boy”, the tone is personal yet it keeps a distance. The evocation of joint experiences help the reader visualize stories that are interesting, sometimes funny and sometimes incredibly sad. Boxing for fun, double-compacted freedom bugs, a summer by the Adriatic or a mantis on the stove.
Száztizenegy lábjegyzet (Hundred-and-one footnotes about Imre Makovecz) is a colourful, lively and memorable portrait of one of the greatest 20th century architects of Hungary.