The roots of an ancient tree in the courtyard of the Vitéz János Secondary School meander through tunnels leading into the past. More and more children want to see what another era was like – some searching for their family, some looking for historical facts, others just wandering. Our protagonists now go back to 1914, the dawn of Hungarian filmmaking, first to Budapest and then to Kolozsvár (Cluj-Napoca) to see if Mihály Kertész is really the same as the Oscar-winning Michael Curtiz, about whom they have to write a term paper. But by the time they are immersed in the world of silent film stars and theatre nights, and Fejó learns to make films and Karola has a serious courter, the First World War breaks out. It is then that they realise that under the surface there are very strong social and ethnic tensions simmering, and that the games of the great powers will soon lead to the borders of Trianon.

In the Absolute History series, we have selected books that are both readable and exciting, and that tell the story of important moments and periods in Hungarian history in an absolutely dynamic, absolutely high-quality and absolutely contemporary language. The characters take a journey through time and the reader is drawn, almost imperceptibly, closer to the spirit and important characters of the times as they sail through a twisting adventure novel. No matter how far into the past you travel, one thing is certain: these books are an absolute joy to read!