The Road Less Travelled - memoir of prof. Ács Zoltán - from the creative editor’s view

Type of Abstract (select): Individual Presentation

Abstract (max. 250 words):
When I began reading the English manuscript received from MCC Press in 2024, I was very grateful for the opportunity, but the text left me confused. By then, I had already lived in the US for two years, and was actively involved in the North American Hungarian diaspora community and had written about Hungarian Americans, who were proud of their Hungarian roots,language, and cultural heritage and passionately served the local Hungarian communities and organizations that their ancestors or themselves had established. In contrast, Zoltán Ács — born in an Austrian refugee camp to a family with a rich Hungarian cultural heritage (noble and educated ancestors and parents who were deeply committed to the Hungarian cause), who later ended up in the projects in Cleveland, OH — experienced his Hungarian identity more as a burden during his childhood and youth. He dropped out of high school to financially help his family, and as a teenager, a young adult he struggled to value his Hungarian heritage. Though he maintained contact with relatives in Hungary, he only began to truly appreciate his Hungarian roots decades later, during the rapid ascent of his professional career, at the time of establishing and benefiting from professional ties in Hungary. His journey along the road less travelled is admirable and exemplary, both personally and professionally. My job was to find the missing pieces and make his journey understandable and engaging for Hungarian readers living outside the North American Hungarian diaspora as well as those outside his professional field.


Brief Professional Bio (max. 100 words):
Ildikó Antal-Ferencz has a degree in economics. In 2016 she became a freelance journalist, focusing mainly on family matters. She is author or co-author of several books, hosted radio programs, round table discussions and conferences, appeared on television programs in Hungary. She had been living in the US between 2022 and 2025 with her family. She authored 200+ articles about the Hungarian diaspora in North America and released five volumes (three in Hungarian and two in English) of her interview book ‘Being Hungarian in America’. She is also the creative editor of prof. Zoltán Ács’ memoir ‘The road less travelled’.