Steve Kossa

Laszlo: The Gentleman from Budapest Steve Kossa

László: Th e Gentleman from Budapest is the stirring biography of author Steve Kossa's father, who was born into a well-to-do family at the beginning of the twentieth century in Budapest, Hungary. Tracing László's life, this story chronicles the ways in which the monumental events of that era transformed his path. The Great Depression, currency devaluation and inflation, the world wars, the Holocaust, communism and Russian occupation, imprisonment in gulags, escape, refugee status, and the family's relocation as displaced persons all played parts in his harrowing life experiences. His life as a "new Australian" started in migrant camps in the outback of New South Wales. From here László eventually moved to Sydney and then to Hobart with his family. Although he was trained as a chemist, he worked in all manner of employment in order to provide for his family in their adopted country. Later, entrepreneurial business ventures followed as he attempted to make up for all that he had lost of his past life in Hungary. László: Th e Gentleman from Budapest vividly recounts the challenges that the author's father faced as his world crumbled around him in Hungary and he sought and later built a new life for his family in Australia.