This month at Matilda Bookshop Book Club, we discussed the fascinating, often eviscerating, episodic account of one man's life in Flesh by David Szalay. The novel opens with fifteen-year-old Hungarian protagonist, Istvan's, first encounters with his own desiring body, and the confusion and shame that often accompanies puberty and the awakening of sexuality. But when a tragic event obliterates any gentle unfolding of desire, the rest of his intimate and domestic life is shaped by the accident. Add incarceration and military service in Iraq, and the traumas start to accumulate. 

The book prompted a prismatic discussion about masculinity, voice (we hardly ever get any interior perspectives), money, outsider status, the limitations of class, as well as lust/flesh, and Shakespearean-level falls from grace. Tonally, the book is very interesting, with the clipped syntax reflecting Istvan's non-effusive character. For some readers, the energy of the book was compelling and fascinating, and for others there wasn't enough warmth or connection with the characters. One reader mentioned the influence of playwright, David Mamet, on Szalay's work, both writers doing away with traditional methods of acting/writing dialogue, while emphasising physicality. Reading the novel with this lens adds deeper perspectives to the meaning of the title. Love the places we go, especially true in this case, prompted by shared book club reading. MOLLY

Flesh was chosen as a ‘Best Book of 2025’ by the Guardian, Observer, Financial Times, Daily Telegraph and Daily Mail.

Articles, reviews and interviews referenced/mentioned in the sessions:

Matilda Bookshop's Highlight on Author series with David Szalay

Writer David Szalay: ‘We live in an era of short attention spans – we have to work with it the best we can’,  interview with Anthony Cummins in The Guardian

Flesh by David Szalay review – brilliantly spare portrait of a man, review by Keiran Goddard in The Guardian

'FLESH by David Szalay: An emotionally acute study of manliness' in the Kirkus Review

'You Should Get a Job: Flesh by David Szalay' by Tim Parks in the London Review of Books (this site has a paywall but you can sign up for free access)

Other books and artists mentioned:

All That Man Is by David Szalay

David Mamet

Thank you to all the recent newcomers to book club, and of course, our longtermers: you all contribute in making this a diverse celebration of books and shared reading.

Just beautiful books  |  matildabookshop.com.au