Imre Nagy is a compelling figure both in life and in death_one whose actions stimulated consequences in Hungary that continue into the present. Providing a summary review of Hungarian Cold War history, Benziger examines the ways in which the memory of the martyred prime minister and the story of the 1956 Revolution influenced political socialization in Hungary. The book begins with Nagy's 1989 funeral and the role memorialization played in the politics of transition, continuing with a review of the important personages and events that informed Nagy's life and afterlife, and it concludes in the tumultuous politics following the establishment of the Republic in 1989. Readers interested in Central and Eastern Europe will find this book useful as it expands the literature on history and memory, and transition politics in the region.

"Well researched and documented.... Scholars interested in Hungarian historiography and post-Cold War politics will find this work most useful. Highly recommended." - CHOICE, April 2009

"Drawing upon the world of Janos M. Ranier, Nagy's biographer, and other Hungarian scholars, Benziger guides readers through the tumultuous days of revolition, a period that witnessed Nagy's second prime ministry and his ever greater awareness that the NewCourse was no longer enough....original...." - American Historical Review, October 2009

"Drawing upon the work of Janos M. Rainer, Nagy's biographer, and other Hungarian scholars, Benziger guides readers through the tumultuous days of revolution (October 23- November 4, 1956), a period that witnessed Nagy's second prime ministry and his evergreater awareness that the New Course was no longer enough...." - American Historical Review, October 2009

"'He who controls the past controls the future,' George Orwell wrote in Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984), 'and he who controls the present controls the past.' Karl P. Benziger, the author of this thoughtful look at the often politicized memories and assessments of Imre Negy, prime minister of Hungary during the 1956 Revolution, does not allow any of them to prejudice his own view." - American Historical Review, October 2009

"The book is a welcome addition to the growing body of literature about the processes by which former communist countries have grappled with their pasts. Imre Nagy, Marytr of the Nation is well worth reading and encourages reflection on the evolution of Hungarian historiography." - Canadian Journal of History

"The book is a welcome addition to the growing body of literature about the processes by which former Communist countries have grappled with their pasts to produce a more realistic and coherent history for new generations to digest Imre Nagy: Martyr of the Nation is well worth reading and encourages reflection on the evolution of Hungarian historiography." - Austrian History Yearbook