David Szalay won the 2025 Booker Prize for his novel Flesh.
The move marks a shift in literary direction, as the winning book is described by the judges as “dark,” triumphant by turning its gaze toward a demographic often overlooked in literary fiction and by financing a deep humanity in its uncluttered prose.
The story revolves around the protagonist, István, from his teenage years on a Hungarian social housing estate to his unlikely rise into London’s world of extreme wealth.
Jury chairman Roddy Doyle said the book “focuses on a working-class man, which isn’t usually talked about a lot.”
He added that the novel “invites us to look behind the face” of an ordinary man who is often rendered invisible.
With the book’s victory, it’s clear that Booker’s judges favored emotional authenticity over escapism.
Szalay’s minimalist approach, using blank pages to emphasize heartbreak and sparse dialogue, forces readers to engage deeply with István’s inner world.
“It is, in many ways, a dark book, but it is a joy to read,” Doyle noted, emphasizing that the power of his novel lies in its unflinching honesty rather than its redemptive narrative.
This victory also highlights a broader cultural moment, where stories of class, migration and complex masculinity resonate deeply.
By assigning Fleshthe Booker Prize not only crowned an exceptional novel, but also validated the profound literary value of telling quiet, thought-provoking stories on the margins of society.
The other contenders for the 2025 Booker Prize were Susan Choi. Flashlightthat of Kiran Desai The loneliness of Sonia and Sunnythat of Katie Kitamura Hearingthat of Ben Markovits The rest of our livesand that of Andrew Miller The earth in winter.
