Revised and expanded for 2026, Joe Hajdu’s Budapest: Story of a Grand Metropolis builds on the success of his acclaimed 2015 volume, Budapest: A History of Grandeur and Catastrophe.
Although Budapest remains one of Europe’s most captivating yet underappreciated capitals in the Anglophone world, Hajdu reveals why the city deserves far greater recognition. With a sharp focus on the communist era and the turbulent decades since 1989, he traces the forces that have shaped modern Budapest.
The story comes alive through vivid portraits of figures who embody the city’s contradictions and brilliance: Count István Széchényi, the visionary builder; Mátyás Rákosi, the ruthless dictator; Viktor Orbán, the populist leader; Sir Alexander Korda, pioneer of the English film industry; and Zsa Zsa Gábor, the enduring symbol of glamour.
Drawing on decades of immersion in Hungarian history and culture, Hajdu offers a sweeping yet intimate account of Budapest’s past and present. The result is a richly woven narrative where grandeur and catastrophe, light and shadow, converge in the fate of a city and its people.
