Took me a while to review after reading it because of how much it had impacted me right after finishing. Since a few years whenever I travel I try to buy a book from an author of that country, and a few weeks ago I picked this up in Budapest. It's a wonderfully written story about the almost parent-like relation the narrator of the book develops with a peculiar, stern older cleaning lady, against the background of post WW2 Hungary. The feeling I left the book with was haunting, feeling bad for everyone involved bc of the emotional stakes of the situation. Definitely will check out Magda Szabo's other books