Tibor Fischer
Overview
 
Tibor Fischer is a British novelist and short story writer. In 1993 he was selected by the influential literary magazine Granta
Granta
Granta is a literary magazine and publisher in the United Kingdom whose mission centers on its "belief in the power and urgency of the story, both in fiction and non-fiction, and the story’s supreme ability to describe, illuminate and make real." In 2007, The Observer stated, "In its blend of...

 as one of the 20 best young British writers.

Fischer's parents were Hungarian basketball players, who fled Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...

 in 1956. The bloody 1956 revolution
1956 Hungarian Revolution
The Hungarian Revolution or Uprising of 1956 was a spontaneous nationwide revolt against the government of the People's Republic of Hungary and its Soviet-imposed policies, lasting from 23 October until 10 November 1956....

, and his father's background, informed Fischer's debut novel
Debut novel
A debut novel is the first novel an author publishes. Debut novels are the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to publish in the future...

 Under the Frog
Under the Frog
Under the Frog is British-born Hungarian writer Tibor Fischer's debut novel, it was published in 1992. The book won the Betty Trask Award in 1993 and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize....

, a Rabelaisian
François Rabelais
François Rabelais was a major French Renaissance writer, doctor, Renaissance humanist, monk and Greek scholar. He has historically been regarded as a writer of fantasy, satire, the grotesque, bawdy jokes and songs...

 yarn about a Hungarian basketball player surviving Communism.
Quotations

Opening the fridge door, I found a rat eating the cheese. My dealings with rodents, particularly those tagged verminous, have been few, but generally the pattern has been one of man, the boss, the caretaker of creation, the namer, appearing and the lower orders hitting the road.

Page 63.

Best of things symbolised by Jocelyne's barbell: "It's a symbol of the need for symbols." "How life shrapnels us." "Assistant bank manageress on the outside, primitive on the inside." "Of whatever I feel like." "That you can do stupid things at any point in your life."

Page 204.

You've got to try everything once, except those things you don't like, or that involve a lot of effort and getting up early.

Page 205.

The impossible lives next door to the possible; people ring its door bell by accident all the time.

Page 226.

 
x
OK