Home | Books By Year | Books from 1906


The Paul Street Boys

Buy The Paul Street Boys now from Amazon

First, read the Wikipedia article. Then, scroll down to see what other TopShelfReviews readers thought about the book. And once you've experienced the book, tell everyone what you thought about it.

Wikipedia article




'The Paul Street Boys' is a youth novel by the Hungarian writer Ferenc Molnr, first published in 1906.

Plot outline



The novel is about schoolboys in Jzsefvros neighbourhood of Budapest and set in 1889. The Paul Street Boys spend their free time at the 'grund', an empty lot that they regard as their "Fatherland". The story has two main protagonists, Jnos Boka (the honourable leader of the Paul Street Boys) and Ern Nemecsek (the smallest member of the group).

When the "Redshirts"another gang of boys, led by Feri ts, who gather at the nearby botanical gardensattempt to take over the 'grund', the Paul Street Boys are forced to defend themselves in military fashion.

Although the Paul Street Boys win the war, and little Nemecsek repeatedly demonstrates that his bravery and loyalty surpasses his size, the book ends in tragedy: Nemecsek dies of the pneumonia that he caught in the conflict.

Literary significance and criticism



Very popular in Hungary, it is considered as a classic book, and it is also one of the most famous Hungarian novels outside the country. It has been translated into many languages, and in several countries, it is a mandatory or recommended reading in schools. The first English translation was made by Louis Rittenberg and published in 1927, and later revised by George Szirtes for a re-release in 1994.

Erich Kstner took up the theme of two groups of boys conducting a "war" and using all the terminology of militarism and nationalism in 'The Flying Classroom', published just before the Nazi Party won elections in Germany. Kstner was, however, less harsh with the character resembling Nemecsek, who in Kstner's version suffers no more than a broken leg.

In Israel, the book is considered a classic youth novel. A Hebrew version titled 'Mahanaim' (Camps also referencing a popular ball game) was published in 1940 and was popular for many years, with multiple reprints. A newer translation titled "The Boys from Paul Street" was published in 1984. A stage adaptation of the book by the Kibbutz theater started performing in 2016.

In Azerbaijan, the book became popular after Ramil Safarov translated it into the Azerbaijani language during his sentence in Budapest.

In Mongolia, the book was published in April 2020 and the Translation team (to Mongolian) was awarded the Hungarian Order of Merit by the decree of the President of Hungary on September 21, 2021.

Film, TV or theatrical adaptations



*'A Pl utcai fik' silent film (Hungary, 1917), directed by Bla Balogh First version of the story by Hungarian director Bla Balogh."[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0241859/ A Pl-utcai fik] (1917) in IMDb.

*'A Pl utcai fik' silent film (Hungary, 1924), directed by Bla Balogh, with Gyrgy Farag ('Nemecsek'), Ern Verebes ('Boka'), Ferenc Szcsi ('Gerb'), Istvn Barabs ('Feri ts'), Frigyes Prtos ('Csnakos'). Second version of the story by Hungarian director Bla Balogh."[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0241860/ A Pl-utcai fik] (1924) in IMDb.

*'No Greater Glory' film (USA, 1934), directed by Frank Borzage and released by Columbia Pictures, with George P. Breakston ('Nemecsek'), Jimmy Butler ('Boka'), Jackie Searl ('Gerb'), Frankie Darro ('Feri ts'), Donald Haines ('Csnakos')."[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0025569/ No Greater Glory] (1934) in IMDb.

*'I ragazzi della via Paal' film (Italy, 1935), directed by Alberto Mondadori and Mario Monicelli, with Giulio Tamagnini ('Nemecsek'), Alberto Vigevani ('Boka'), Giulio Macchi ('Gerb'), Bruno Aghion ('Feri ts'), Carlo Cartigliani ('Csnakos')."[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0197805/ I ragazzi della via Paal] (1935) in IMDb.

*'A Pl-utcai fik' film (Hungary-USA, 1969), directed by Zoltn Fbri, with Anthony Kemp ('Nemecsek'), William Burleigh ('Boka'), John Moulder-Brown ('Gerb'), Julien Holdaway ('Feri ts'), Robert Efford ('Csnakos')."[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0062164/ The Boys of Paul Street] (1969) in IMDb. - The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

*'I ragazzi della via Pal' TV film (Italy-Austria-Germany-Hungary, 2003), directed by Maurizio Zaccaro, with Gspr Mess ('Nemecsek'), Gspr Csaba ('Boka'), Gergely Mszros ('Gerb'), Daniel Lugosi ('Feri ts'), Pter Vnyi ('Csnakos')."[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0347843/ I ragazzi della via Pl] (2003) in IMDb.

*'A Pl-utcai fik' TV film (Hungary, 2005), directed by Ferenc Trk, with Balzs Bojtr ('Nemecsek'), Krisztin Fekete ('Boka'), Miln Kirly ('Gerb'), Csaba Csuhai Csinos ('Feri ts'), Rbert Rostsi ('Csnakos')."[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0477832/ A Pl utcai fik] (2005) in IMDb.

See also



Other European books depicting "war" between rival groups of boys

* 'The Flying Classroom'

* 'War of the Buttons'

Brazilian Band IRA! made reference to this novel in their song "[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAZz1_gUIeM&list=OLAK5uy_nSTVS1tPFaZ4dBDP8pP5ULZdHq-3ZMlLQ&index=2&ab_channel=Ira%21-Topic Rua Paulo]" from their album entitled "Meninos da Rua Paulo"

Further reading



* [https://lingualeo.com/en/jungle/ferenc-molnarthe-paul-street-boys-chapter-one-527969 Chapter One] of 'The Paul Street Boys'

References





Category:1906 novels

Category:Hungarian novels

Category:Literary works by Ferenc Molnr

Category:Novels set in Budapest

Category:Young adult novels

Category:Novels set in the 19th century

Category:Hungarian novels adapted into films

Category:Hungarian children's literature

Category:1906 children's books

Category:Novels set in the 1880s

Buy The Paul Street Boys now from Amazon

<-- Return to books from 1906



This work is released under CC-BY-SA. Some or all of this content attributed to http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1088988376.