"We all have to die some day" – she said. "But not in a crummy hat like this" – remonstrated the man sentenced to death.
"He instead creates a sort of literary brutalism in which the reader is gutted by raw solutions and harsh images. The source material is the same, only the method changes, but it does so radically. An artistic vision is born, and when we read it we do not think ‘wow, so well-written’ but ‘shit, how do you survive this?’." – A portrait of Romani-Hungarian writer Tamás Jónás, written by Péter Járvás for Telex and translated by Hanna Zelma Horányi.
New Release: Silence and Other Poems by Károly Bari
A bilingual collection of Hungarian-Romani poet and painter Károly Bari’s poems will be published in gábor g. gyukics’s English translation by El Martillo Press.
Tibor Weiner Sennyey: Bees and Death, or What to Tell the Bees
Bees "mourn" when the central figure of the colony, the queen bee, dies, and as is well known among beekeepers, they make a strange, unmistakable sound, which the literature describes as "the bees crying." – An excerpt from Tibor Weiner Sennyey's The Art of Beekeeping, translated by Deborah Marshall.
Bence Sárközy: In the end, we did what we had to do
Just This Once, the volume containing Péter Nádas’ essay, is being posthumously published following the author’s death: in the text, Nádas reflects on the future of the planet and humanity, and within that the future of Europe. Litera spoke with Nádas’ publisher, Bence Sárközy, about the book, their personal and professional relationship, and the upcoming 40th anniversary of A Book of Memories.
Péter Bognár Wins Esterházy Literary Prize
The author was awarded the 2026 Esterházy Literary Prize for his novel Elmész, visszajössz, sose halsz meg (You’ll Go, You’ll Return, Never Will You Die).
New Release: Moments from the Life of a Hedgehog by Edina Szvoren
Edina Szvoren’s short story collection, translated into English by Ottilie Mulzet, will be published by Seagull Books in October.
A Traveler’s Guide to Reggel és este
The voices all grapple with what is here and not: the baby about to be born, the wife gone, the deceased friend reappearing, the boat ride that both is and cannot be. – Diana Senechal introduces a Hungarian stage adaptation of Jon Fosse's Morning and Evening, to be played next at Szkéné Theatre, on 8 November.
To Understand Ourselves is To Understand the World – Remembering Péter Nádas
"What are we to make of one another, as humans, and of all the whirling chaos more commonly known as history?" – HLO editor Dóra Szekeres remembers the life's work of Péter Nádas.
New Book by Péter Nádas to Be Published Posthumously
A new book by Péter Nádas, titled Most az egyszer (Just This Once), will be published at the end of September. This will be one of the last works of the author who passed away earlier this month. As his publisher writes, ‘in the book, Péter Nádas lists the topics he does not wish to speak about. “Shared silence weighs more.” So he does speak in the end.’
László Krasznahorkai Awarded One of Germany’s Highest Honours
The Nobel laureate received the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany with Star from President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.
Framing the Father: Family History, Autofiction, and the Work of Memory
“Grecsó deliberately avoids the categories of ‘family novel,‘poverty literature,’ and ‘autofiction’—not because he has no connection to them, but because it is precisely these boundaries against which the novel pushes.” – Márton Soltész reviews Krisztián Grecsó's 2024 novel What My Father Left Unsaid.
András Forgách: The Unfamiliar Face – On the Death of Péter Nádas
"This Nádas is reminiscent of the Nádas I know, but is a subvariant, a variation, a musical rest I have never met in person." – A farewell to Péter Nádas from András Forgách.
International Book Festival to Host Celebrated Authors from Germany, Austria, and Switzerland
The 31st annual International Book Festival will bring some of the most exciting authors of contemporary Swiss, German, and Austrian literature to Budapest.
Viktória Radics: What Do We Believe In – For the Death of Péter Nádas
He moved his entire being when he wrote, he surrendered himself to the writing: Do with me what you will, you have found a partner – it is no accident that he called writing monastic work. – Viktória Radics bids farewell to Péter Nádas.
Péter Nádas Dies Aged 83
The world-renowned writer, playwright and essayist died on 26 August at his home in Gombosszeg.
International Book Festival Guest of Honor: Irish Author Colm Tóibín
The Association of Hungarian Book Publishers and Distributors will host the 31st Budapest International Book Festival from 1 to 4 October this year, where Irish author Colm Tóibín will be the guest of honor.
Margit Kaffka: Colours and Years
"It is hard to consider the absence of Colours and Years from set reading lists and not read it as an expression of the belief that women’s fates – especially when told by women – do not belong in the core canon." – Hanna Zelma Horányi continues her Starter Pack series with an introduction of Margit Kaffka's Colours and Years.
Renátó Fehér: The Golden Age of Assassins
The second in our mini-series of mini-reviews from Élet és Irodalom's Ex Libris column, László Tunyogi reviews Renátó Fehér's latest work of prose-poetry, The Golden Age of Assassins.
Júlia Lázár: Two Poems
"color matters, all that swirling force, / and detail too, you need a starting point, / a mite inside the unfathomable, / a touch of human within the divine." – Two poems from Júlia Lázár, in Dani Dányi's translation.
Péter Bognár: May Death Ride to Persia!
We kick off HLO's new mini-series of mini-reviews with a brief word from László Tunyogi on Péter Bognár's latest work, May Death Ride to Persia!, writing for the Ex Libris column of volume LXX, issue 32 of Élet és Irodalom.
