Description
Description
"Lázár is an exquisite and masterly pronouncement that a gifted young writer walks among us." --Patti Smith An "astonishing...disturbingly dreamlike" (Daniel Kehlmann, The Director) debut, inspired by the author's own family story--a gothic, inter-generational family saga capturing the rise and fall of an aristocratic Hungarian family against the backdrop of the two world wars. At the turn of the 20th century, the Lázárs welcome their newest member in their rural summer estate, surrounded by a menacingly dark, enchanting forest. Lajos von Lázár is a baby boy with translucent skin and light-blue eyes who looks nothing like the rest of his family. Sándor, the imposing patriarch, is ashamed of his son's peculiarity. Ilona finds her baby brother quite ugly. Mária is terrified that her son's uncanny resemblance to the stagehand who died a couple weeks earlier might spell disaster. While Imre, Sándor's brother whose otherworldly foresight is often confused for insanity, is struck by visions of a great catastrophe. Lajos's birth is emblematic of the many secrets, affairs, and peculiar otherworldly happenings that plague the Lázárs. As the decades go by, they will continue to fall prey to their desires, leading grand lives, and experiencing even greater tragedies as they're swept by the tides of war and revolution that befall their country. But time and again, in the lighter years, extraordinary love and hope shine through. Masterfully written and deeply haunting, Lázár is a magisterial novel that presents the sweeping history of a nation through the lives of one extraordinary family.
About the Author
About the Author
Nelio Biedermann, born in 2003, is the author of Anton will bleiben and Lázár. Originally published in Germany, Lázár is an international sensation and was an instant bestseller. It won the 2025 Favourite Book of Independent Booksellers award and is being translated into more than twenty-five languages. A native of Zurich, Biedermann is studying German literature and film at the University of Zurich.
Critical Reviews
Critical Reviews
"Lázár is captivating and vivid, creating an intriguing atmosphere of secrets, repression and furtive but robust sexuality." --Marcel Theroux, The Guardian "Fabulous is the word for this twisted modern fairytale." --James Riding, The Times "Biedermann not only shows plenty of skills as a novelist, but wisdom well beyond his years. His imaginative capacity and desire to engage with both the discomforts of history and the cornucopia of dead authors who inspired him gives you - at least, it gave me - a cynicism-killing hope for the future of literature. Lázár, above all, shows that the drab realism of too many millennials doesn't cut it for the generation now coming of age. To Gen Z novelists, that style is past its sell-by date. This is the future now."--Telegraph UK "Gothic and fairytale-esque, it's a definite page turner."--Dua Lipa's Service95 "Lázár is an exquisite and masterly pronouncement that a gifted young writer walks among us."--Patti Smith "Lázár is an astonishing book--a multi-generational family story filled with deeply original characters and gripping scenes, at times realistic, at times disturbingly dreamlike. This novel would be an event in any case. But the fact that its author has only just reached adulthood turns its publication into a thunderclap. A truly great writer steps onto the stage, in full possession of his powers."--Daniel Kehlmann, internationally bestselling author of The Director
Publishing Information
Publishing Information
Publisher:
S&s/Summit Books
Pub date:
2026-04-07
Length:
272 pages
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