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The Door

4.16 of 5 stars 4.16 · rating details · 496 ratings · 66 reviews

A young writer, struggling for success, employs an elderly woman called Emerence to be her housekeeper.From their first encounter it is clear that Emerence is no ordinary maid.Although everyone in the neighbourhood knows and respects her, no one knows anything about her private life or has ever crossed her threshold. Only a great drama in the writer's life prompts Emerence...more

Paperback, 262 pages

Published October 5th 2006 by Vintage (first published 1987)

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Mar 08, 2013 Kalliope rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction-english, international-lit, austro-hungary, eastern-europe

How on earth could the telling of the life and character of an aged Hungarian cleaning lady feel so eerily uncanny?

Because, do not be mistaken, this is not a mystery book. This is a novel about the relationship between two women: an illiterate servant and her considerably younger employer, a writer. The latter narrates the story, which is set in Hungary around the 1960s-80s.

So, how could this be such a memorable story? Magda Szabo (1917-2007) proves in The Door to be an astounding writer. Afte...more
How on earth could the telling of the life and character of an aged Hungarian cleaning lady feel so eerily uncanny?

Because, do not be mistaken, this is not a mystery book. This is a novel about the relationship between two women: an illiterate servant and her considerably younger employer, a writer. The latter narrates the story, which is set in Hungary around the 1960s-80s.

So, how could this be such a memorable story? Magda Szabo (1917-2007) proves in The Door to be an astounding writer. After a gripping beginning, she then takes us through a very intense, scary, and magical unfolding of the tale. Szabo draws her brushstrokes regularly, building up the suspense, or may be peeling off the many veils that cover reality.

What emerges is the extraordinary and colossally strong personality of Emerence, the servant. She is an atavistic force that communicates with animals like no other person can, and who has a magnetic power and physical strength to attract or banish or condemn those beings around her according to her beliefs, moods and whims.

In contrast, the other woman --the “woman writer”-- as narrator seems subjected to the will of the strong elderly servant. The unbalance in strength is found also in the way the book focuses our view. If the name of Emerence is introduced at the very beginning of the book, the name of the “woman writer”, Magdchen, which is also Szabo’s name, is only mentioned, in passing, towards the end. The writer and creator becomes the anonymous observer, the “woman writer” in the story.

But is she just an observer? Is she really subjected to Emerence’s forces? For, as she tells us, at the very beginning: “ I killed Emerence…” And this chilling start prompts the telling of the story that led to this, the relationship between two beings that The Door separates. This ambiguity on who is acting on whom makes me think of this book as a meditation on subjectivity.

The Door was published in Hungary in 1987 and has been translated by Len Rix, winning him the prestigious Oxford Weidenfeld Translation Prize in 2006. This is my first book by Magda Szabo and would like to read more. Unfortunately very little has been translated.

Now I will wait until Istvan Sazbo’s 2012 film version, with Helen Mirren as Emerence is shown in a cinema near me…!!!
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Nov 24, 2011 Noce rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: narrativa-ungherese

L'importanza di chiamarsi Emerenc

“Ogni definizione senza emozioni finisce per essere imprecisa”.

Assioma importantissimo per poter leggere questo libro.
Emerenc non è una donna che si può “leggere” con fare distaccato.

E’ la domestica che tutti vorremmo, e la vicina di casa che senza conoscere, potremmo incolpare della strage di Erba.

Emerenc ha una casa. E come tutte le case, c’è una porta. Pur sembrando una porta qualsiasi, diventa blindata per chi non è desiderato. Per chi non merita la fiducia d...more

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Nov 18, 2010 Isairon rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Avrei intitolato questo romanzo Matrioška (le bambole russe una dentro l'altra). Emerenc dopo aver sofferto e subito troppo. Delusioni, abbandoni, perdite. Decide di non farsi più coinvolgere sentimentalmente dalla vita, dalle persone. Aiuta, si fa voler bene da tutti ma lei non da confidenze a nessuno. Solamente pochi eletti riescono ad apprendere qualche episodio della sua vita. Per far questo erige un suo feudo dove solamente lei può entrare. La sua casa. Finestre, porte sempre chiuse. Nessun...more Avrei intitolato questo romanzo Matrioška (le bambole russe una dentro l'altra). Emerenc dopo aver sofferto e subito troppo. Delusioni, abbandoni, perdite. Decide di non farsi più coinvolgere sentimentalmente dalla vita, dalle persone. Aiuta, si fa voler bene da tutti ma lei non da confidenze a nessuno. Solamente pochi eletti riescono ad apprendere qualche episodio della sua vita. Per far questo erige un suo feudo dove solamente lei può entrare. La sua casa. Finestre, porte sempre chiuse. Nessuno deve vedere, sapere cosa cela il cuore di Emerenc. Ma questo è il primo livello, la prima Matrioška. Dentro la casa ne esiste un'altra ancora più inaccessibile. Una stanza chiusa a chiave, davanti alla porta una cassaforte che la nasconde e ne inibisce l'accesso. Dentro questa stanza c'è la vita, il passato di Emerenc. Ma per troppo tempo è rimasta chiusa, in balia del tempo, dell'incuria, della solitudine. Quando qualcuno trova il coraggio, l'amicizia, l'amore per scardinare quelle porte chiuse per allontanare il dolore, oramai è troppo tardi. L'aria, il contatto fisico con quegli oggetti rimasti celati li portano alla rovina. "Non tocchi nulla è pericoloso muovere qualsiasi cosa. Il tessuto, i mobili, sono morti, qui dentro è tutto morto. ... Iniziò a disfarsi lentamente, con grazia, finché si dissolse in un cumulo di segatura dorata. ... Nessuno poteva sfiorarli, nemmeno con gli occhi." Così come la vita di Emerenc, crolla lentamente.
A prima lettura il senso di colpa della scrittrice l'avrei spiegato nel rammarico di non essere stata vicina a Emerenc quando aveva più bisogno di avere al suo fianco una persona amica. Ma l'avrebbe accettata questa presenza? Poi, ripensandoci, tenendo conto del carattere irascibile e solitario della "vecchia" e del sogno ricorrente che la scrittrice fa, mi porta a pensare che il suo rammarico è nel non aver saputo scardinare prima le porte che Emerenc aveva sigillato sul mondo e non essere riuscita a fare arrivare in tempo i soccorsi (l'amicizia, l'amore).(less)

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Feb 06, 2012 Ben Dutton rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Magda Szabó was widely regarded as Hungary’s foremost female writer, and following her death in 2007, her reputation has only increased. She was known as a novelist, dramas, essays, and poetry, though she came to the first three of those after the era of Stalinist rule ended in Hungary. Prior to Stalinist rule she had at least two books of poetry and was awarded the Baumgarten Prize in 1949 only to have to taken away from her the same day.

Az Ajtó (The Door), then, is a late entry in her canon. I...more

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Mar 15, 2013 I Am Vertical rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Un personaggio quasi mitologico, Emerenc.
Dura, pragmatica, infaticabile, di una ruvidezza spiazzante: eppure infinita, negli affetti, quando davvero ama, e lei ama davvero.
La sua grandezza nel sentire è rapportabile all’incapacità di conferire a ciò che prova la morbidezza di cui quel sentimento è composto.
L’inavvicinabilità la rende a chiunque indispensabile.
Il suo mondo interiore è un mare agitato, tenuto igienicamente a bada da una porta che la separa dal resto del mondo, che le consente...more

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Jul 18, 2011 Sarah rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I cannot decide whether I liked this book or not, perhaps because I found the characters hard to like. It is compellingly written for the most part. I found myself wanting to find out what happens next (there's a lot of foreshadowing that hints at the difficulties ahead) until I got to the final 20 pages and then I lost interest. Emerence and her employer have a strong bond in spite of their very complicated relationship. Emerence herself is a complicated person whose strengths and weaknesses ar...more

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May 29, 2011 Sera rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Door combines the story of two women, a writer and her housekeeper. The housekeeper Emmerence is quite a character. She is full of surprises and secrets. She is maybe one of the most surprising characters in literature written in such a brilliant way, you can see her one of a kind character in absolute clarity.

While the narrator of the book enters the door of her soul, we see how vital the essence of privacy is in a human life. Everyday life details are combined with psychological elements a...more

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Aug 27, 2008 John rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Having lived and studied in Budapest for several years this book took my breath away....ive never read a work which captures so intensely the essense of privacy, boundries, our misconceptions of the people around us in our daily lives....its also superbly written and paced and somehow uniquely Eastern European....read it!

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Nov 11, 2010 Chrissie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Recommended to Chrissie by: Daisy

Shelves: hf, hungary, relationships, philo-psychol, text-checked

NO SPOILERS!!!

Through page 20: I picked this book up for two reasons – Daisy highly recommended it and it is written by a Hungarian writer that is very highly acclaimed. You know from the start that this book is about the relationship between two women, an authoress and her cleaning lady, Emmerence. You understand immediately that this cleaning lady is no ordinary person. You are intrigued to find out why she is the way she is – very hard to deal with and yet a very good person…….

Here follows...more NO SPOILERS!!!

Through page 20: I picked this book up for two reasons – Daisy highly recommended it and it is written by a Hungarian writer that is very highly acclaimed. You know from the start that this book is about the relationship between two women, an authoress and her cleaning lady, Emmerence. You understand immediately that this cleaning lady is no ordinary person. You are intrigued to find out why she is the way she is – very hard to deal with and yet a very good person…….

Here follows a glimpse from pages 18-19:

"Why she refused to accept presents was beyond me. The old women was only interested in giving, and if anyone tried to surprise her with something, she never smiled, she flew into a rage. …..if I had to have a deeply meaningful relationship with everyone I met, well that was my problem. It wasn't easy for me to accept that, as with everyone else at that time, Emmerence was determined to keep us too at arm's length."

Through page 72: I do think I will like this book. The lines are just marvellous. Here are a few examples.

The following, from page 59, is about their male dog, Viola: "It was difficult to get use to the fact that he understood everything."

These people really need some help with dog obedience training……..

Emmerence is a kindred spirit to me. She says on page 60: "Anyway, you know I can't stand doctors."

Or this from the same page: "Let me be. I don't like it when you lecture me. If I ask for something and you give it, do it without preaching a sermon, otherwise there is no point…… I didn't like my own secrets. I liked other people's even less."

Through page 97: I am not just enjoying reading this book, I am LOVING it!!! The authoress must be a psychologist in disguise. She knows people and dogs too. She knows what motivates us and saddens us and drives us insane, and then she uses this knowledge to put funny, cutting and heart-wrenching words in the characters' mouths so that the message is cleverly delivered! I rarely read novels b/c I rarely encounter novels such as this. WONDERFUL – and I still have almost 2/3 left to suck on. Thank you, Daisy.

On completion: I cannot give this novel five stars, only four. Don't forget, a four star book is for me a VERY good book!!! All that I said before IS till valid but I felt the ending was overworked. What had to be said WAS already said. The ending seemed to really spell it out clearly so nobody could miss the point! By the end of the novel, my feelings toward Emmerence were very mixed. Some of the characters were depicted more negatively than they needed to be. I preferred seeing them drawn in a nuanced, sometimes even ambiguous manner. Some of the decisions made REALLY surprised me! Some actions felt so foreign to what I would do, that I was flabbergasted. I KNEW trouble was coming. Perhaps others would make such decisions, even though I wouldn't or couldn't. This would definitely be a good book for a group discussion. I DID enjoy reading the book and it covers a lot of territory – truth and lies, religion and the church, how we look at death and FRIENDSHIP, what it demands and what it gives! It gives a marvellous portrayal of dogs. But I have a question – did Sutu get the job? Should she get the job?
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Sep 01, 2012 Lisetta rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

La porta simbolo del cuore, il cuore di Emerenc.....!

Romanzo che si dispiega con discrezione, svelandoci passo passo il personaggio di Emerenc. Un personaggio che si incontra e si rivela a noi, ad ogni pagina, in ogni riga. E entra in noi, dentro di noi piano piano.

Questo romanzo non �� altro che l'affermazione di una mia pi�� salda convinzione, ossia che un buon libro pu�� entrare nel tuo cuore, colpirlo irrimediabilmente, senza bisogno di usare parole estreme, grandi colpi di scena, senza viol...more

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May 20, 2012 Arwen56 rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: romanzi

Nell’alveo della storia magiara, che accoglie la sostanza della narrazione senza mai però interferirvi, limitandosi come fa a fornire solo dei riferimenti temporali che aiutano il lettore a meglio collocare e comprendere i fatti, si staglia con un nitore ed una imponenza fuori dal comune Emerenc Szeredàs, la donna delle pulizie che per vent’anni aiuterà e parteciperà alla vita di una non meglio identificata “scrittrice” (personaggio dietro al quale, in buona parte si cela la stessa Magda Szabò,...more

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Jun 01, 2012 Maria rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: aanraders

Al even geleden gelezen, maar wil nog even kwijt dat ik het echt een gewèldig boek vond.
Een schrijfster in Boedapest en haar huishoudster Emerence hebben een haat-liefde verhouding maar raken uiteindelijk steeds meer aan elkaar gehecht. Emerence is een bijzondere vrouw met (naar stukje bij beetje duidelijk wordt) een verleden.
Ze is nogal opvliegend, onvoorspelbaar, gaat haar eigen gang en leeft erg teruggetrokken. Zo komt in haar huis niemand verder dan de hal. Ze is een anti-intellectueel met...more

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Aug 08, 2009 Mazel rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: roman

" "Il faut savoir tuer qui on aime, dit la vieille femme, c'est plus humain que laisser souffrir."

Par moments le livre retrouve, naturellement, la réflexion antique de la quête du sens, ou du grotesque shakespearien. C'est aussi qu'Emerence a je ne sais quoi des figures de la tragédie antique, capable d'engueuler les dieux et de ramasser dans la poussière les viscères des morts. Ou de parler le langage des oiseaux et des chiens.

Qu'est-ce donc qu'un personnage, sinon un masque que l'art emprunt...more

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Apr 03, 2012 Dóra rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Tipikus Szabó Magda, aki zseniális, de jóval könnyebb túladagolni, mint Vonnegutot meg Terry Pratchettet, akik pedig méginkább ugyanazt a könyvet írják meg újra meg újra.

És nem értek egyet azzal a moralitással, amit ez a könyv sugall. Az, hogy valamit megtenni úgy ahogy megtörtént, nem votl helyes, nem jelenti szükségszerűen, hogy nem megtenni helyes lett volna. A rendkívüli embereknek sincs mindig mindenben igazuk, nem szabad senkit embrefeletti vonásokkal felruházni.

A könyv persze igazabb, mél...more

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Jul 13, 2008 Katri rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: hungarian-literature

A beautifully written, haunting novel. I was engrossed with this unusual story as I was reading it, and my thoughts keep returning to it afterwards.

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Jul 29, 2011 Jasminka rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011, books-i-own

Love this book, I really enjoyed while I was reading it...
The door is fascinating and beautifully story of a unique relationship between two women, the writer Magda Szabó and her hired elderly maid and neighbor Emerence. It is written from the writer's perspective, but focuses on enigmatic life and hidden, secret past of Emerence and the development of their friendship and mutual dependency. This is a heartbreaking and tragic story about responsibility, guilt, honesty, sacrifice, strength, loyal...more

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Apr 18, 2008 lena rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: made-me-cry, my-favorite

One of the best books I have ever read. Simple narration about complicated relationship between two women. Very touching and sad book.

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Jul 21, 2012 John Carpenter rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I bought the book on a recent trip to Budapest, hoping to read some Hungarian literature while I was there, but I think I was looking for something more contemporary or more experimental--I don't know. I'd love to hear from someone who liked the novel so that I might take it up again with a refreshed point of view. Clearly, I was missing something. Vivid scenarios with extensive details about the narrator's mysterious housekeeper and frequent references to Hungary's past should have been exciti...more

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Feb 27, 2011 Clumsy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

ecco la versione “alta letteratura” dell’Eleganza del riccio. anche qui c’è una portinaia che nasconde qualcosa, dal carattere duro e l’etica inflessibile. un microcosmo che le gira attorno, mentre spazza foglie o neve dai marciapiedi. E poi c’è il rigore dell’Ungheria. e qui ricordo un altro libro, il fantasmatico Trilogia della città di K: grottesco, austero, ‘pensiero’.<br />Bellissimo, questo La porta, che anche in tempi di lettura difficile mi ha strappato minuti e portato in un mondo...more

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Oct 19, 2008 Libbeth rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2006

The ending of this book still haunts me two years later. A very touching story.

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Aug 07, 2011 John rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I thought this book was amazing! I can't think of another novel which explores so eloquently questions of privacy and respect in our desire for friendship and our perception of others. I found the central character, Emerence, utterly compelling as is the 'forcible unlocking' of her character which becomes a shocking violation by the end... It might be interesting to compare this book to "Notes on a Scandal' though i found this book more subtle and powerful despite it being much less melodramatic...more

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Apr 20, 2013 Teresa Esteban rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 20th-century, european-challenge-2013

It's the story of a betrayal, in a most unusual sense but still, a betrayal that leaves deep wounds in both sides. The narrator –I suppose that she's also the writer? –tells the story of her relationship with Emerence. It would be quite inaccurate and flat to describe Emerence as the cleaning woman, she's far more than that. But I'm unable to point out exactly what she is. The book is about how they both 'discover' each other and develop a very special bond – I still haven't understood its cause...more

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Nov 26, 2012 Mel rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 20th-century-fiction, hungarian-lit, translation

My Hungarian friend bought me this book as Szabo is the most popular Hungarian author and this was supposed to be a very good translation. I think the translation was good as it definitely had a style to it, that I think is hard to do with most translations. The book was very enjoyable and very different. The book was a character study really about the relationship between two women, one a successful author and the other her hardworking cleaner. One of the interesting things was the fact that in...more

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Jun 05, 2011 Empress rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Uh, I feel bad writing the first review and having it be negative. But, this book was not the complex or moving psychological drama/suspense novel that I had anticipated. Nothing really happened until the last third of the book, to which I persisted in reading despite my boredom and utter lack of care for the two "protagonists" whom have an unlikely "friendship" and basically just take turns having petty,outrageous explosions and consequent grudges against each other. This book is insanely repet...more

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Oct 28, 2011 Elisa rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: preferiti

Quando l'umanità andrà a spasso tra le stelle, nessuno ricorderà più quel pianeta lontano, quel barbaro asilo infantile dove abbiamo combattuto così tante misere battaglie, pubbliche e private, per conquistare una tazza di cioccolata, ma anche allora sarà impossibile accomodare il destino degli esseri umani che non trovano posto nella vita degli altri.

Sicuramente avrete preso fra le mani questo libro attratti dalla trama vagamente misteriosa annunciata dalla quarta di copertina: una scrittrice,...more Quando l'umanità andrà a spasso tra le stelle, nessuno ricorderà più quel pianeta lontano, quel barbaro asilo infantile dove abbiamo combattuto così tante misere battaglie, pubbliche e private, per conquistare una tazza di cioccolata, ma anche allora sarà impossibile accomodare il destino degli esseri umani che non trovano posto nella vita degli altri.

Sicuramente avrete preso fra le mani questo libro attratti dalla trama vagamente misteriosa annunciata dalla quarta di copertina: una scrittrice, la sua donna delle pulizie scontrosa e instancabile che non lascia varcare la porta di casa sua a nessuno, un mistero da scoprire. Ingredienti appetitosi. Il titolo aggiunge enfasi all'ignoto: la porta, quella precisa e specifica porta che nasconde chissà quale segreto, non una a caso fra l'infinita stirpe delle porte, una speciale, distinguibile dalle altre relegate nel cimitero dell'ordinario. I capitoli vi accompagneranno lungo il tragitto verso quel mistero, e voi continuerete a osservare gli eventi con occhio rapito ma non potrete fare a meno di continuare a fissare lo sguardo su quella porta, come se fosse il centro dell'universo, semplicemente perché nasconde qualcosa, e attende di essere aperta, spiata, di rivelarsi in un sussurro e poi svanire con la chiusura del libro. Sazi, conoscerete finalmente il segreto e potrete continuare felici la vostra esistenza facendo i preziosi con chi ancora il libro non l'ha letto e vi chiede indizi, come chi ha già visto un film e ne conosce tutti i colpi di scena.
Scordatevi una lettura di così lieve impatto. Dietro quella porta c'è un'ascia, ed è rivolta contro di voi.

La porta di Emerenc non è solo la sua porta. Vi accorgerete con il cuore a pezzi che quel pezzo di legno speciale non è altro che l'uscio di tutti coloro che passeggiano sulla terra accanto a voi, che siano oggetto dei vostri pensieri quotidiani o meno. Tutti noi abbiamo una porta personale: bella, rispettabile, deteriorata, rosa dai tarli. Lasciamo varcare la soglia solo a chi riteniamo degno della nostra considerazione oppure a chiunque possa consegnarci un po' di attenzione, perché la solitudine si deposita rapidamente sui mobili, e tenere ordine all'interno è un compito gravoso per sbrigarsela da soli. A volte l'ingresso degli estranei avrà un effetto benefico, altre volte devasterà il vostro nido come il più potente dei terremoti. Altre volte sarete voi a varcare l'uscio altrui, osserverete con sdegno qualche rotolo di polvere in bella vista o ammirerete lo splendore della pianta sul davanzale, quella che voi non riuscite mai a tenere in vita a casa vostra.

Questo libro vi dà la possibilità di vivere le vostre relazioni con gli altri con un occhio più consapevole. E di vergognarvi di voi stessi, anche se la vostra faccia - o porta, che sia - è riconosciuta dal mondo intero come rispettabile e ammirevole. E' come un galateo che spunta dalla vostra borsa dopo che avete visitato l'ultima casa, e vi mostra con disappunto che siete stati inopportuni e selvaggi come vandali in terra straniera. Emerenc è quella che si definirebbe una vecchia bisbetica, solo una vecchia, e probabilmente ne avrete individuate diverse nel corso delle vostre passeggiate per le strade del mondo. Dopo aver letto questo libro non riuscirete ad usare l'articolo indeterminativo in modo così indiscriminato. Che la grammatica si metta l'anima in pace. La porta di Emerenc è quella che fino a poco tempo fa avreste definito UNA porta e bollato con un "mah, niente di speciale" prima di immergervi nuovamente nella vostra vita, nei vostri affari, all'insegna del "che me n'importa". Dopo Emerenc, non potrete più farlo, perché il sogno che tormenta Magda sarà il vostro, e il viso della vecchia vi si parerà davanti ogni volta che cercherete di porre l'inutile davanti all'essenziale, semplicemente perché l'inutile vi riguarda e l'essenziale comporta una spesa di energie, tempo, vita per qualcun'altro, chiunque esso sia.
O, per lo meno, il suo viso vi si parerà davanti finché la filosofia del "chi me lo fa fare" non ritornerà roboante nella vostra vita, e non tornerete inconsapevolmente sui passi di Magda, di Sutu, di tutti quelli che sono troppo occupati a vivere i propri sogni e sopravvivere per tendere una mano a chi, sfortunatamente, resta indietro.

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May 13, 2011 Bettie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Recommended to Bettie by: Spotted 4* result on Libbeth's profile

Shelves: published-1987, translation, one-penny-wonder, hungarian-root, paper-read, spring-2011, dog-steals-the-show, bedside, historical-fiction

Translated by Len Rix. First line: I seldom dream.

from wiki - Their most influential leader, László Rajk, who was minister of foreign affairs at the time, was arrested in May 1949. He was accused of rather surreal crimes, such as spying for Western imperialist powers and for Yugoslavia [...]At his trial in September 1949 he made a forced confession to be an agent of Miklós Horthy, Leon Trotsky, Josip Broz Tito and Western imperialism. He also admitted that he had taken part in a murder plot agai...more

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Jan 08, 2013 Giovanna rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ungheria, la-sfida-delle-eroine, sfido-me

Spunti di riflessione da un libro che devo ancora digerire:
1 - Ma può davvero esistere una persona come Emerenc?
2 - Se si,quale paese,o società o vissuto personale può averla "creata" ?
3 - Come ha fatto la scrittrice ad essere abbastanza coraggiosa da confessare pubblicamente in un libro il proprio fallimento nei confronti di un essere umano che l'amava con tutta se
stessa e che contava su di lei nell'estremo momento del bisogno?
4 - La comprensione dell'altro non avviene mai?
5 - Come può essere...more

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Oct 29, 2012 Mita rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: in-prestito

Bello, ma profondamente doloroso.
Doloroso perchè se c'è una cosa che fa male è vedere la malattia e con essa il decadimento fisico privare una persona della dignità umana, e accorgersi che la consapevolezza che la persona ha di tutto questo la porta a lasciarsi andare e smettere di combattere. E quanto più la persona era forte, integra ed orgogliosa, ma soprattutto punto di riferimento per quanti aveva intorno, tanto più tutto questo diventa doloroso, perchè vi si aggiunge una sorta di delusion...more

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Oct 28, 2009 Rick K. rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Really good, 9/10.

Nothing much happens over the course of the book, but it is so well done that you don't care. A little like Marilynne Robinson, in that sense.

Well written. I especially like the discussion/portayal of what is betrayal and how the most important or damagig events in a relationship can seem minor, or justified, from the outside.

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Jun 15, 2012 Csaba Hurton rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-hungarian

The most beautiful story I have ever read about respecting privacy and taking care of each others' secrets. The secret of the personality of Emerence enchants you and won't let you go until you break her Door - and then comes the feeling of guilt that we all feel when we realise how rudely we interrupt in other people's lives unnoticed.

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About Magda Szabó

Magda Szabó was a Hungarian writer, arguably Hungary's foremost woman novelist. She also wrote dramas, essays, studies, memories and poetry.

Born in Debrecen, Szabó graduated at the University of Debrecen as a teacher of Latin and of Hungarian. She started working as a teacher in a Calvinist all-girl school in Debrecen and Hódmezővásárhely. Between 1945 and 1949 she was working in the Ministry of R...more

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Quotes from The Door

“Nem látja, hogy rám hiába villog, nekem senki se kell, aki nem tökéletesen az enyém? Maga mindenkit berakna egy dobozba, aztán mikor ki kell, azt veszi elő, ez itt a barátnőm, ez az unokatestvérem, ez az öreg keresztanyám, ez a szerelmem, ez az orvosom, ez a préselt virág Rhodosz szigetéről, na, hagyjon engem békén. Ha egyszer nem leszek, majd nézzen ki olykor a temetőbe, az elég, ha nem vállaltam azt az embert barátnak, mert férjnek óhajtottam, maga se játssza itt nekem azt, hogy maga az én meg nem született gyermekem.” — 4 people liked it

“Fáradt vagy, mert főzöl, és takarítasz, és vásárolsz, és nem sikerül senkit se találnod, akit elviselsz a közeledben, mert nem valakit keresel te, hanem azt az egyetlent, aki soha többé nem jön el hozzád, Emerencet.” — 3 people liked it

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BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/946485.The_Door?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1179698367l/946485.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/946485.The_Door?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]The Door by Magda Szabó[/url]

The Door

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