Booker Prize Winner

Flesh

by David Szalay

Summary

A spare, minimalist novel following István, a Hungarian-British man, from his traumatic teenage years through wealth and into physical decline, exploring what it means to live in a body.

Historical Context & Significance

Szalay became the first Hungarian-British author to win the Booker Prize. The judges described it as a novel they 'had never read anything quite like' for its hypnotic prose and unflinching portrayal of physical existence.