Hungarian 'Master of the apocalypse' wins Literature Nobel

Hungarian writer Laszlo Krasznahorkai won the 2025 Nobel Prize in Literature on Thursday "for his compelling and visionary oeuvre that, in the midst of apocalyptic terror, reaffirms the power of art".

- NIKLAS POLLARD & MARIE MANNES

"Laszlo Krasznahorkai is a great epic writer in the Central European tradition that extends through Kafka to Thomas Bernhard, and is characterised by absurdism and grotesque excess," the Swedish Academy, which awards the prize, said in a statement.

"But there are more strings to his bow, and he also looks to the East in adopting a more contemplative, finely calibrated tone."

The settings of his novels move across central Europe's remote villages and towns, from Hungary to Germany, before skipping to the Far East, where his travels to China and Japan left deep-seated impressions on Krasznahorkai.