Journey by Moonlight (Pushkin Classics)

‘Antal Szerb is one of the great European writers’ Ali Smith

‘A novel to love as well as admire, always playful and ironical, full of brilliant descriptions, bon mots and absurd situations’ Guardian

A major modern classic: the turbulent story of a businessman torn between middle-class respectability and sensational bohemia

Mihály and Erzsi are on honeymoon in Italy. Mihály has recently joined the respectable family firm in Budapest, but as his gaze passes over the mysterious back-alleys of Venice, memories of his bohemian past reawaken his old desire to wander.

When bride and groom become separated at a provincial train station, Mihály embarks on a chaotic and bizarre journey that leads him finally to Rome, where he must reckon with both his past and his future. In this intoxicating and satirical masterpiece, Szerb takes us deep into the conflicting desires of marriage and shows how adulthood can reverberate endlessly with the ache of youth.

Part of the Pushkin Press Classics series: timeless storytelling by icons of literature, hand-picked from around the globe

Translated by Len Rix