flesh

by David Szalay

David Szalay is one of the most significant voices in modern fiction and when you read Flesh, the 2025 Booker Prize winner, it’s easy to see why. The novel follows István, tracing a life that stretches from a restless youth in Hungary to the polished, often hollow heights of London high society. It is a story of movement, both geographical and social, yet it remains intensely grounded in the physical.

Szalay’s prose is famous for being spare and detached, yet it manages to be deeply moving. He doesn’t just describe a life, he maps the quiet, often overlooked sensations of aging, desire, and the simple weight of being alive. In Flesh, the grand moments of history feel like distant thunder, while the immediate reality of a conversation or a physical touch feels monumental.

A contemplative, sophisticated work that asks us to look closely at our own existence. For those who appreciate a story that is as intellectually sharp as it is emotionally resonant, this is a masterclass in the art of the novel.