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The coveted Nobel Prize in Literature for 2025 has been granted to from Hungary author László Krasznahorkai, as revealed by the Swedish Academy.

The Committee highlighted the seventy-one-year-old's "powerful and prophetic oeuvre that, within end-times terror, reaffirms the force of art."

An Esteemed Career of Bleak Narratives

Krasznahorkai is celebrated for his dystopian, somber books, which have garnered many prizes, such as the recent National Book Award for literature in translation and the 2015 Man Booker International Prize.

Several of his books, including his fictional works Satantango and The Melancholy of Resistance, have been turned into feature films.

Early Beginnings

Originating in the Hungarian town of Gyula in the mid-1950s, Krasznahorkai first made his mark with his mid-80s first book his seminal novel, a dark and captivating representation of a failing rural community.

The work would eventually earn the Man Booker International Prize honor in the English language many years later, in 2013.

A Unique Writing Approach

Often described as postmodern, Krasznahorkai is known for his lengthy, intricate phrases (the 12 chapters of Satantango each are a single paragraph), apocalyptic and pensive subjects, and the kind of persistent power that has led literary experts to compare him to Kafka, Melville, and Gogol.

The novel was famously made into a lengthy movie by cinematic artist the director Béla Tarr, with whom Krasznahorkai has had a enduring creative partnership.

"Krasznahorkai is a remarkable author of grand narratives in the Central European heritage that extends through Franz Kafka to the Austrian writer, and is marked by the absurd and bizarre extremes," commented Anders Olsson, chair of the Nobel panel.

He portrayed Krasznahorkai’s style as having "developed towards … continuous syntax with lengthy, intricate phrases without punctuation that has become his signature."

Critical Acclaim

Sontag has described the author as "the contemporary Hungarian genius of apocalypse," while Sebald applauded the broad relevance of his vision.

A handful of Krasznahorkai’s works have been rendered in English translation. The literary critic Wood once noted that his books "are shared like rare currency."

International Inspiration

Krasznahorkai’s career has been shaped by travel as much as by literature. He first left the communist his homeland in 1987, spending a twelve months in West Berlin for a fellowship, and later was inspired from Asia – notably Asian nations – for works such as The Prisoner of Urga, and another novel.

While writing War and War, he explored across Europe and resided temporarily in Ginsberg's New York home, describing the famous Beat poet's assistance as crucial to finalizing the work.

Krasznahorkai on His Work

Questioned how he would characterize his work in an conversation, Krasznahorkai said: "Letters; then from letters, vocabulary; then from these terms, some brief phrases; then additional phrases that are longer, and in the main very long paragraphs, for the span of decades. Beauty in prose. Enjoyment in darkness."

On readers discovering his books for the first time, he noted: "If there are people who are new to my books, I couldn’t recommend any specific title to peruse to them; instead, I’d advise them to step out, sit down somewhere, possibly by the banks of a creek, with nothing to do, a clear mind, just being in quiet like stones. They will eventually meet someone who has previously read my novels."

Nobel Prize Context

Ahead of the reveal, oddsmakers had ranked the favourites for this annual award as an avant-garde author, an experimental from China novelist, and the Hungarian.

The Nobel Honor in Literature has been presented on over a hundred past events since the early 20th century. Current laureates include Ernaux, Dylan, the Tanzanian-born writer, the poet, the Austrian and Olga Tokarczuk. The previous year's honoree was Han Kang, the from South Korea author most famous for her acclaimed novel.

Krasznahorkai will officially be presented with the award and certificate in a ceremony in winter in Stockholm, Sweden.

Updates to come