Abstract
A Journey Round My Skull (Utazás a koponyám körül) is the most popular novel of the Hungarian writer Frigyes Karinthy. It is an autobiographical account of an illness – diagnosed as brain tumor – that he developed at the age of forty-nine. The book records his observations, thoughts and emotions, from the moment the first symptoms of the disease make themselves felt, through the long process of diagnosis to the ultimate surgery, conducted in Stockholm, which saved his life. Published in 1936, A Journey Round My Skull won both popular and critical acclaim. Also the international medical community found it a convincing piece of medical testimony. It was adapted for the stage and for the screen (in 1970). It was also translated into a number of languages, including English (1939) and Polish (2008).
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