László Krasznahorkai’s publisher sold more books in a week than in a year

The Hungarian publishing house Magvető reported that in just the first week after the announcement of the 2025 Nobel Prize in Literature, book sales of the laureate László Krasznahorkai exceeded the publisher’s usual annual figures. Magvető’s director, Anna Dávid, shared this in an interview with Chytomo at the Frankfurt Book Fair.

“We’re constantly receiving calls and letters. Since he doesn’t give interviews, all questions come to us. Today, for example, someone asked me if I had ever asked him why he writes such long sentences. I said — no,” says Dávid.

This year marks the 40th anniversary of Krasznahorkai’s novel “The Satanic Tango” (“Sátántangó”).

“When I first read it in the late 1980s, the long sentences felt natural. You get used to them easily — just twenty minutes of attentive reading is enough,” the publisher recalls.

Dávid said that in August, Krasznahorkai finished a new novel, which will be released on November 11. The publishing house is also preparing 17 reprints of his previous books.

“He’s not a supporter of the current regime, so he’s unlikely to take part in any presentations. We’re trying to convince him — readers are eager to meet him,” Dávid says.

After the publication of “The Satanic Tango” in 1985, Krasznahorkai became one of Europe’s most influential prose writers, with his works translated into 42 languages.

“His readership is constantly renewing. It’s like with pop stars: first your own generation listens to you, then their children, and later their grandchildren. He’s lucky — every generation rediscovers him,” the publisher notes.

When asked what makes Krasznahorkai special, Dávid answers:

“His style is melancholic. It’s believed that he has two main themes he always returns to. The first is the poor — those with fewer opportunities: people with little education, difficult economic conditions, or those living on the margins of society. He treats them with compassion. The second is art. He believes that through art one can uncover truth and find the transcendent — art in this noble sense.”

“It’s a great honor to be the publisher of a Nobel laureate. And it’s the second time for us: Hungary now has two Nobel Prize winners from the Carpathian region,” Dávid emphasizes.

Magvető is a Hungarian publishing house established in 1955 in Budapest. It specializes in fiction, poetry, and essays. Among its authors are Imre Kertész (2002 Nobel laureate) and László Krasznahorkai (2025 Nobel laureate).

Magvető has been publishing Krasznahorkai’s works since the 1980s. After the political changes of 1989, the publishing house became private, and Hungarian writers for the first time were able to have their own literary agents.

“Until the late ’80s, all rights belonged to the state. Then authors started working with German agents. Now we also perform agency functions,” Dávid explains.

Today, international rights to Krasznahorkai’s works are represented by Laurence Laluyaux of the Rogers, Coleridge & White Literary Agency.

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Main image: Szilágyi Lenke

Images: Oksana Khmeliovska

Copy editing: Joy Tataryn