 "Canadian-Hungarian-British writer David Szalay won the Booker Prize for fiction on Monday for “Flesh.” AP")
Hungarian-British writer David Szalay won the prestigious Booker Prize for his novel ‘Flesh’ on Monday (November 10). The 51-year-old writer beat five other finalists, including favourites Andrew Miller of Britain and Indian author Kiran Desai, to take the coveted literary award.
The book follows a young man’s journey from the working-class streets of Hungary to acquiring wealth and status in Britain. The beauty of Szalay’s writing lies in its spare, unadorned honesty, capturing the quiet life of István.
It traces his experiences from a defining early romance with an older woman, through the challenges of immigrant life in Britain, and finally into a bizarre transformation in which this solitary figure becomes a key player in London’s elite social circles.
David Szalay was born in Montreal, Canada, to a Hungarian father and a Canadian mother. Although he was primarily raised in the United Kingdom, he has now chosen to live and work in Vienna.
Here’s what you need to know about him and his works.