A collection of Szerb's shorter fiction, which superbly demonstrates his development from young idealist to mature ironist Here you have Szerb in miniature... revealing his multi-faceted genius Nicholas Lezard, Guardian This selection of Antal Szerb's stories and novellas, set first in a quasi-mythical past and then in the London and Paris of the Thirties, provides an exhilarating guide to the writer's development, from precocious beginnings to a masterful maturity. In these unforgettable tales-two of which are new to this edition-Szerb displays his irrepressible love of life and the gentle irony that became his hallmark. Antal Szerb was born in Budapest in 1901. Though of Jewish descent, he was baptised at an early age and remained a lifelong Catholic. He rapidly established himself as a formidable scholar, through studies of Ibsen and Blake and histories of English, Hungarian and world literature. He was a prolific essayist and reviewer, ranging across all the major European languages. Debarred by successive Jewish laws from working in a university, he was subjected to increasing persecution, and finally murdered in a forced labour camp in 1945. Pushkin Press publishes his novels The Pendragon Legend, Oliver VII and his masterpiece Journey by Moonlight, as well as the historical study The Queen's Necklace and Love in a Bottle and Other Stories.