Vienna to celebrate Krasznahorkai's Nobel Prize with a 30-hour reading from his works

The Wiener Volkshochschulen network, which mainly focuses on adult education, is celebrating this year's recipient of the Nobel Prize in literature with a Krasznahorkai reading marathon. According to information on the organization's website, anyone can join the 30-hour event as a listener or as a reader for a 20-minute segment. The program, timed to coincide with the eve of Nobel Week in Stockholm, will begin at 10 a.m. on December 5 and is expected to end at 4 p.m. the following day.

The Wiener Volkshochschulen organization offers training courses, various educational support projects, and continuing education programs at 32 locations around the city in cooperation with the Vienna City Council.

Impossible to ignore

As previously reported, on October 9, the Swedish Academy awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature to Hungarian writer László Krasznahorkai, who has previously received the Kossuth Prize, awarded by the Hungarian state as well. "Krasznahorkai's Nobel Prize is not merely a recognition of the author himself but also a seal of approval for his unique global literary experience, which stems from his Hungarian heritage and speaks both of our history and of the ultimate questions that all human beings grapple with. And as such, it is simply impossible to ignore," we wrote in our portrait of the author.

As also reported, following the announcement of his winning the Nobel Prize, László Krasznahorkai visited the library in the town of Szentendre, where he used to live, accompanied by a film crew from the Swedish state television. Magvető Publishing, which publishes the author's works in Hungary, informed us that all but one of his works will be available in stores between now and Christmas. His new novel, A magyar nemzet biztonsága (The Security of the Hungarian Nation), hit bookstores in mid-November. In our review, we wrote: "His thoughts are grim, but his humor lively; his images are dark, yet his characters likeable; his questions are heavy, but his prose keeps them light throughout."