Under the FrogUnder the Frog

Under the Frog, Tibor Fischer's brilliant recreation of postwar Eastern Europe, was the surprise literary success of London last year, where it won the Betty Trask Award and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. It is the very witty and very sad account of two young men who survive the chaos of communism as part of a travelling basketball team. Set in Hungary from 1944 to 1956, the story follows the fortunes of the team in pursuit of sex and the avoidance of work.