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about the authors & works
György Spiró
György Spiró(born in Budapest, 1946) has been best-known until
nowas one of Hungary’smost notable playwrights. A former radio
journalist, he has won virtually every literary prize in Hungary. His
work combines a classical sensibilitywith decidedly contemporary
language and concerns. He presently teaches at ELTE University
of Budapest, where he specializes in Slavic literatures.
Captivity
is Spiró’s nearly 900-page juggernaut of a novel. An
unconventional reconstruction of Jewish life in the First Century
A.D., it follows the travails of the myopic Uri from his youth, as
he makes his way in the world.
Captivity
has just been named
by
The Wall Street Journal
as one of the 10 Best fiction books of
2015: “Monumental… The level of detail is stunning; Mr. Spiró
seems to know absolutely everything about the first-century
Mediterranean world…
[Captivity]
never loses steam. (…) You
can read it as a parable of the Jewish condition amid the modern
empires of Europe, or you can simply lose yourself in the ancient
setting it so comprehensively describes.” Available from Restless
Books.
You can listen to a conversation with the author about this work
here(13 minutes).
Translated from Hungarian by Tim Wilkinson.
A note on the author