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On Friday, Flesh, the novel by Booker Prize-winning author David Szalay of Hungarian descent, was presented as part of the 97th Budapest International Book Week
David Szalay’s book was published by Libri; at the event, the novel’s translator, András Barabás, spoke with the author.
Based on the book’s description, the shy and awkward fifteen-year-old István lives with his mother in a quiet residential neighborhood in Hungary. He is new to the town, soon isolates himself from his classmates, and becomes entangled in events which alienate him from himself permanently.
When his married neighbor begins to court him, his life takes an unexpected turn. Their relationship develops into a secret affair, the true implications of which even István does not fully grasp, and eventually his life spirals out of control.
His argument with the woman’s husband escalates into a physical altercation, after which he is held responsible for the man’s death. He is sent to a juvenile detention center and later serves as a soldier in Iraq. Years later, he works for a security firm and eventually becomes a chauffeur for an English billionaire family in London, where he immerses himself in the world of the rich and famous,
but he comes to realize that beauty and success often hide emotional emptiness and loss.
In his pursuit of success, love, and wealth, he achieves everything he wants, but at the peak of his success, a sudden tragedy threatens to rob him of it all. The book traces István’s life journey in a brutal and realistic manner, showing how the consequences of his decisions gradually break him down.
András Barabás (right) and David Szalay. Photo: MTI/Róbert Hegedüs
David Szalay explained during the panel discussion: The main character, István, is a mystery even to him, and perhaps this is one of the elements he values most about the book. He said he tried to create a character who remains unexplored even to himself—someone who could just as easily be a flesh-and-blood person, since everyone has their own secrets.
He considers precisely this enigmatic quality to be one of the book’s main strengths,
he added. The author also noted that details are very important to him when he imagines a scene or a story, whether it is a prefab apartment in Pécs or an outrageously expensive restaurant. In his opinion, as soon as a story becomes realistic and believable, it triggers an emotional response in the reader, which is of crucial importance.
David Szalay discussed the special role of food, spoke about his favorite books, addressed the topic of self-confidence, and also touched on the difficulties of translation and the minimalist style.
Fact
David Szalay is the author of four novels, one of which, All That Man Is, was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. He has been awarded the Gordon Burn Prize and The Paris Review’s Plimpton Prize in the fiction category. The writer—whose father is Hungarian and whose mother is Canadian—was born in Canada in 1974, grew up in England, graduated from Oxford, and lives in Vienna, though he spent several years in Hungary.
Via MTI; Featured photo: MTI/Hegedüs Róbert
The post David Szalay Presents His Acclaimed New Novel “Flesh” in Budapest appeared first on Hungary Today.
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