"Istvan isn't one of the most talkative characters in literary fiction. He says "yeah" and "okay" a lot, and is mostly reactive to the world around him. But that quietness covers up a tumultuous life from Hungary to England, from poverty to being in close contact with the super-rich. He's the center of David Szalay's latest novel, Flesh, which just won this year's Booker Prize."
""We had never read anything quite like it," said Roddy Doyle, chair of this year's prize, in a statement announcing the win. "I don't think I've read a novel that uses the white space on the page so well. It's as if the author, David Szalay, is inviting the reader to fill the space, to observe almost to create the character with him.""
Istvan is a quiet, reactive protagonist whose frequent 'yeah' and 'okay' mask a tumultuous life that moves between Hungary and England and spans poverty and proximity to the super-rich. Flesh centers on his physical experience of living in the world and on cultural and economic divides within contemporary Europe. David Szalay is Hungarian-British and drew inspiration from living between Hungary and England. Flesh won this year's Booker Prize, carrying a £50,000 award and a typical sales boost. Judges included Roddy Doyle, Ayobami Adebayo, Chris Power, Kiley Reid and Sarah Jessica Parker. Flesh beat five other shortlisted books.
Read at www.npr.org
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