Road to Hell

A few weeks ago we went to a huge bookshop to buy some history books for my boyfriend, as that's one of his manias. I was glad to discover that there were lots of books on sale, and finally decided I couldn't go home without Szabó Magda's Mézescsók Cerberusnak. (Before that the only book I'd read by her was Abigél, which is considered to be a book for youth, I mean adolescent bookworms, and was also made into a film. I read it a couple of months ago, and enjoyed it a lot, perhaps because I have so much in common with the protagonist, namely boastfulness and stubbornness.)
The title itself is quite interesting. In English it is something like Gingerbread for Cerberus, but in Hungarian the first part is a compound of honey and kiss. The ideology is that when you want to travel to the Underworld you have to pay a fare, you have to bring money for the ferryman and some cookies for Cerberus, the three-headed dog who guards the gate. (Sorry if I'm not clear here. This is Greek/Hellenic mythology, and I should be familiar with it but I've forgotten a lot.) So this book is meant to be the fare to the Underworld as well as the journey itself.
Szabó revisits her early childhood memories, old relatives and friends who have been dead for a long time. Inbetween the real-life stories there are a few quite exciting short stories, revisiting well-known literary themes such as the love of Helen and Paris. What I really liked in those is that they take a different perspective from what we usually get. These stories tell the day before, e.g. the day before Paris arrived. Actually I really liked that one. The story unfolds gradually. First we don't even know the characters by name. They are referred to as two sisters, Blonde and Brown (Clytemnestra and Helen).
The real-life stories were also quite enjoyable. I like it when a writer tells us about his or her own life. I like to read about the atmosphere, about life in earlier times, especially if the era is about the same as when my grandparents grew up. I think it's a sad thing that by the time we really get interested in the life of our grandparents and their times they are all gone (at least in my case). I would like to find out more about them and write about them as for example García Marquez or Szabó did.
The other thing I enjoyed reading were the lots of dramatic turning points and folklorist romances, e.g. when a girl dies tragically on her wedding day and the likes. And there were lots of dignified old ladies with peculiar habits and adventurous lives. Szabó's portrayal of herself was also interesting. It turned out that she was quite selfish and naughty, especially in relation to boring old ladies. And of course she looks back on all these events when she's a similar old lady herself, a distant relative and a burden on youth.
One of my friends is a great fan of Szabó's books and in fact I heard of this book from her. I think I will read more of her books because there is something in it that I like. And I haven't mentioned her delicate language and the intelligence with which she handles the common European literary heritage.