"The vibrant Jewish quarter of Budapest provides the setting for these stories by Hungarian twin brothers -- refugees since 1956 -- that won the prestigious Italian Jesolo Prize. This unusual "composition by two hands" has impressed readers across Europe for its high dignity and perfect artistic control. The Eighth District is the last great center of European Jewry to withstand the Nazis and Stalin (as well as the crushing of the 1956 uprising). The story of its Jews and Gypsies, peasants and market traders, scholars and musicians has remained hidden until now, both to Hungarians and to the rest of the world."-- Book jacket.