This book explores the narrator's mother's death - the second half being narrated by the dead mother. Interspered between the narrative segments are quotations from a wide variety of literary sources. In the narrative segments, especially those of the mother, dreams and "reality" are intertwined. The book deserves multiple readings to fully appreciate its content but is certainly enjoyable as a single read.

Note: since there is no description of the book this is translated from Hungarian and is part of a larger work.

Often as one gets older, there is a need to get back to one's roots. I am of half-Tirolean ancestry, but have never been fully immersed in the culture. And unfortunately, I've also never visited the region either. This book has been very helpful in becoming re-acquainted with my Tirolean roots.

Ms. Ward has presented good research and anecdotal information about an ethnic group of which, aside from yodeling and their folk costume, very little is known outside of the region.

The book also clarifies some hot regional issues dealing with politics and ethnicity that were seldom spoken of when I was growing up. And it's filled with quotes, prose, and anecdotes from the past 200 years which were very interesting!

The book fell short of my expectations only in that it lacked articles on physical anthropology of the Alpine (a.k.a. Alpinid) group to which Tiroleans belong. The emphasis was primarily on the sociological aspects of Tirolean life.

I would recommend Hidden Life of Tirol to anyone interested in European contemporary history. Gemutlichkeit!!

Readers with little background knowledge of Hungarian history will learn a lot from this book. It is not forbiddingly academic in style, and it makes a lot of useful common-sense points about Hungary's turbulent experiences in this century. Specialists may find it a little too general, however, and though the translator has made a good effort the text is sometimes tough going.

Certainly one of the best books that I have read to date. The greatest strength of the book is way the author provides exhaustive insights as to how his conclusions were reached which in my opinion elevates the book from a "lecture-book" that merely lays down the supposed facts to one that interactively engages the reader. The sources and the authenticity of the material is debated to a large extent and provides the reader with a solid understanding of how the area has been researched so far, of who the sources were and how they help in the construction of the "Magyar story".

The weakness of the book is that it does not elaborate much on the social-economic ascpects which is the only reason I ranked it 4 stars. The depth of the explanations may leave some readers lost...however each section has a clear and well structured summary that should leave him/her in no ambiguity. All in all a delight to read...it's a pity that we have so few English texts on Hungraian history.

The book is a must have for any serious student of pre-conquest Hungarian history.

My interest in reading this book was the insight it gave into Janos Kadar's New Economic Mechanism of 1968, and Hungary's subsequent economic fine-tunning of the state socialist system. I was rather satisfied by this book because it dealt extensively with the political wranglings which had to occur in order for Hungary to escappe the grip of the Societ Secretariats. In truth, it's rather amazing that a Soviet bloc nation was allowed to endeavour on such blatantly market oriented reforms (and, to soften the point a little, the reforms where indeed more paper than practice). This book deals primarily with the political, so if you need economic theory, this is not the place. For a great economic analysis of the reforms, I recommend Gabor Revesz's "Perestroika in Eastern Europe: Hungary's Economic Transformation, 1956-1988".

Despite sub-par maps, numerous typos and a very rough translation, this book is a must read for any student of the Eastern Front. Never before have I read such a detailed anaylsis of joint German/Hungarian military matters in 1945. Topics covered include poltical relations between the Germans and the Hungarian fascists, the "Final Holocaust", the economic/political realites of oil and war, and the final destruction of the Waffen-SS in its last deperate counterattacks.

One of the best books I have ever read regarding these mostly ignored chapters of World War II.

This book is not for the faint of heart. It delves heavily into the world of economic theory and policy, which may seem daunting to the layman. This is not a fun read. It quotes facts, statistic and theorizes in such a manner that everything must be absorbed before continuing. Yet it is a masterpiece in analyzing the workings of the Hungarian socialist system and why it ended. It examines the key difficulties in establishing workable socialism and follows the various reforms and 5-year plans that marked Hungarian Communist history. The book does not deal with historical events directly, but rather with the economic decisions that defined the direction the country took. A must read for all serious students of Hungarian Communist and post-Communist history.

A very profound study of the development and tactics of the Austrian Army during the Seven Years War. A 'must have' for all interested in the 18th century war history.

This book seems to be one of the books looking forward in future. I think it is useful who is interested in knowing the concept in Agent Technology for distributed application development.

George Konrad is a Jewish Hungarian essayist and novelist. Once imprisoned for his political writings, he participated in the Hungarian uprising and has played an ctive role in the birth of democratic principles in Eastern Europe. "The Invisible Voice" is a collection of essays (20 altogether) encompassing a variety of issues, with the usual strong moral basis of a great thinker. Advocating a spiritual-intellectual resistance and plurality of human reality, Konrad tackles the issue of the importance of free will both at the level of the individual, and collective society.

He discourses on issues such as nationalism and the imperative of human being not to submit his freedom of conscience to any human institution, be it state or church. As a Diaspora Jew, Konrad firmly holds to the principle that it is impossible to have total jewish assimilation -- "Jews cannot free themselves from the gift, or burden, of having born Jews" -- Jewishness meaning the imperative of personal freedom of thought.

On the issue of the conflict between Israel and Palestine, Konrad stands for a peace that is not limited to a "cease-fire," but rather on mutual acceptance, respect, a peace to be made by the whole of society.

Konrad is a humanistic Jew, seeking for a validity more universal than the national; always conscious of the fact that man's fate designated him for choice, to decide what is good and what is bad, every day of his life. Great reading, and it is unfortunate that his two best-known novels - "The Case Worker" and "The City Builder" - are presently out-of-print.