Az Asszony éS Az Idegen [A Stranger Came To The Farm - Novel.] (First Hungarian Edition) Waltari, Mika Hungarian-Language Books

Mika Waltari: Az asszony és az idegen [A Stranger Came to the Farm - Novel.] [Translated by] G. Beke Margit. Budapest, [1941.] Dante. 404 p. First Hungarian edition. Publisher's half-linen binding, in illustrated paper dust jacket by Hungarian illustrator Vera Csillag. The dust jacket has a small flaw. - -- - Mika Waltari (1908 1979) was a Finnish writer, best known for his best-selling novel The Egyptian (Finnish: Sinuhe egyptiläinen). Waltari was one of the most prolific Finnish writers. He wrote at least 29 novels, 15 novellas, 6 collections of stories or fairy-tales, 6 collections of poetry and 26 plays, as well as screen plays, radio plays, non-fiction, translations, and hundreds of reviews and articles. He is also internationally the best-known Finnish writer, and his works have been translated into more than 30 languages. - -- - A Stranger Came to the Farm (Vieras mies tuli taloon) A profoundly tragic tale about love, resentment and alcohol abuse. Aaltonen arrives at a remote Finnish farm seeking work. The so-called stranger comes from the city, where his former life was worlds apart from the humdrum of the Finnish hinterlands. The farm is managed by an unnamed, strait-laced woman who lives with Alfred, her alcoholic husband who she keeps locked up in the bathroom. Although the farm was originally purchased in an attempt to save Alfred from the evils of the city, his wife soon realises that the evil she wanted to save her husband from lies deep within his soul. Aaltonen and Alfred s wife find common ground and spend a happy summer together but, before their relationship has a chance to blossom, Alfred manages to precipitate unthinkable tragedy. The book takes both erotic and violent turns, passing thoughtful and philosophical comments on both human nature and the banality of life. Its publication in 1937 was met with moral outrage from its readers. Waltari submitted A Stranger Came to the Farm to WSOY s novella competition anonymously and won. When his book Never A Tomorrow was awarded second place and the jury learned that both works were by Waltari, he had to withdraw the latter. A Stranger Came to the Farm has been adapted for film twice: first in 1938 by Wilho Ilmari and then in 1957 by Hannu Leminen.