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A review by npp1236
Skylark by Dezső Kosztolányi
4.0
Before Skylark, I don’t think I’ve ever read any type of Hungarian literature, and definitely never heard of Dezso Kosztolányi. To be honest, how much I enjoyed Kosztolányi’s story and style of writing was a surprise to me. The setting of Sarszeg was meant to be a bit bleak and uninviting but by the end of the novel, it was a place I wanted to visit myself. I also felt a connection to this story because as I began it, I was actually on the way to Germany, leaving my parents alone for the first time since I left for college. The situation the Vajkays were left in reminded me of my parents. However, they were left only for a week, which is how long the time-span of the novel, is.
Within a week, it’s clear the Vajkays, both Mother and Akos have rediscovered themselves in a way, eating heartily, drinking heavily, enjoying the company of high society, their old friends. Kosztolányi is able to paint such a vivid picture of the local restaurant scene and the gentleman’s society that I imagined the storyline as a rich movie in my head. I feel like I always learn so much about Austria and Vienna during this time that getting a thorough glimpse of Hungary was very satisfying. What was particularly satisfying was the descriptions of food by Kosztolányi. There are too many mouth-watering examples to cite here. However, the significance of a home-cooked meal in Hungarian culture is apparent, along with the importance of restaurant culture.
A majority of the story was following Akos and Mother around, and their struggle of reintegrating into society while Skylark is away. However, Skylark’s letter and then return was not only an emotional roller coaster ride, but such a heavy hitter in terms of the way I’d wish the book ended (happily, sappily and perfect, I suppose). I hoped Skylark would end up with a boyfriend of sorts and that she might move out and everyone would be happy and free. But, Kosztolányi brings reality back full force, revealing how truly dependent this family is on each other, in an almost unhealthy way.
Skylark’s unhappiness that is revealed to the reader is not the most upsetting part of this story to me. Akos’s admitting of how he finds Skylark to be ugly really got to me, and was definitely surprising in the midst of how the story was going. I wouldn’t have thought that was going to be his drunken confession. I think honesty is a part of the Hungarian culture and people that can be seen everywhere from art to music to politics even. While everything seems like a deception, I feel like most things are actually just out in the open, for people to deal with, if they want to. The judge’s wife’s affairs is one example along with the rest of the personal lives of the Panthers, of the awkward relationship between honesty and honor in this society.
I’ll conclude with a quote from Skylark that I feel lucky to have read, if not for meaning, just for the way it was written. It’s a bit strange out of context but I thought it was simply but still beautifully written:
“I,” she began in her thoughts, as we all do when thinking of ourselves. But this I was her, something, someone whose life she really lived. She was this I, in body and in soul, one with its very flesh, its memories, its past, present and future, all of which we seal into a single destiny each time we face ourselves and utter that tiny, unalterable word: “I.”
Within a week, it’s clear the Vajkays, both Mother and Akos have rediscovered themselves in a way, eating heartily, drinking heavily, enjoying the company of high society, their old friends. Kosztolányi is able to paint such a vivid picture of the local restaurant scene and the gentleman’s society that I imagined the storyline as a rich movie in my head. I feel like I always learn so much about Austria and Vienna during this time that getting a thorough glimpse of Hungary was very satisfying. What was particularly satisfying was the descriptions of food by Kosztolányi. There are too many mouth-watering examples to cite here. However, the significance of a home-cooked meal in Hungarian culture is apparent, along with the importance of restaurant culture.
A majority of the story was following Akos and Mother around, and their struggle of reintegrating into society while Skylark is away. However, Skylark’s letter and then return was not only an emotional roller coaster ride, but such a heavy hitter in terms of the way I’d wish the book ended (happily, sappily and perfect, I suppose). I hoped Skylark would end up with a boyfriend of sorts and that she might move out and everyone would be happy and free. But, Kosztolányi brings reality back full force, revealing how truly dependent this family is on each other, in an almost unhealthy way.
Skylark’s unhappiness that is revealed to the reader is not the most upsetting part of this story to me. Akos’s admitting of how he finds Skylark to be ugly really got to me, and was definitely surprising in the midst of how the story was going. I wouldn’t have thought that was going to be his drunken confession. I think honesty is a part of the Hungarian culture and people that can be seen everywhere from art to music to politics even. While everything seems like a deception, I feel like most things are actually just out in the open, for people to deal with, if they want to. The judge’s wife’s affairs is one example along with the rest of the personal lives of the Panthers, of the awkward relationship between honesty and honor in this society.
I’ll conclude with a quote from Skylark that I feel lucky to have read, if not for meaning, just for the way it was written. It’s a bit strange out of context but I thought it was simply but still beautifully written:
“I,” she began in her thoughts, as we all do when thinking of ourselves. But this I was her, something, someone whose life she really lived. She was this I, in body and in soul, one with its very flesh, its memories, its past, present and future, all of which we seal into a single destiny each time we face ourselves and utter that tiny, unalterable word: “I.”