The Promise
About the Book
The Promise is Valerie Gyenge’s second novel.
It is based on a true story (her story) of a Hungarian Olympic Gold medallist who at the age of twenty-three followed her heart to the other side of the globe. Leaving behind her country, her family and friends, her illustrious status, and her love for competing in swimming at the Olympic level, she immigrated to Toronto, Canada.
It was all in the name of love. As she had promised, she linked up with her fiance who escaped from Hungary to Toronto months earlier during the revolution. She became a nameless foreigner in new country. To make matters worse off, her dreams did not go as planned. Anna had to fight for the courage to find her place in life.
Excerpt
For four long years after her first Olympic gold medal in 1952, she continued the hard work. But everything went up in smoke in just a few days: the hundreds of kilometres in the pool, the aching muscles, the sacrifices made to follow her dream of repeating her victory…
Was it worth it? Read to find out.
Author’s Bio
Valerie (Vali) Gyenge won a gold medal in the 400 meters freestyle for Hungary at the 1952 Olympic which was held in Helsinki. She was a world record holder in the 800 meters freestyle in 1953. She immigrated to Canada in 1956.
The Promise is her second work of fiction. Her previous novel The Way We Were was originally published in Budapest in 1998 under the title Ket Asszony Elete (The Lives of Two women) and became a bestseller.
She is also the author of a photo book My Hungary which also contained poems by the well known Hungarian poet, Gyula Illyes. She is a photographer and gave numerous photo exhibitions in Canada and in Europe. She lives in Toronto, Canada and in Budapest, Hungary.
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