Winner of the 2015 Man Booker International Prize Beauty, in László
Krasznahorkai's new novel, reflects, however fleeting, the sacred - even if
we are mostly unable to bear it. In Seiobo There Below we see the Japanese
goddess Seiobo returning to mortal realms in search of perfection. An
ancient Buddha being restored; the Italian renaissance painter Perugino
managing his workshop; a Japanese Noh actor rehearsing; a fanatic of
Baroque music lecturing to a handful of old villagers; tourists intruding
into the rituals of Japan's most sacred shrine; a heron as it gracefully
hunts its prey. Told in chapters that sweep us across the world and through
time, covering the furthest reaches of human experience, Krasznahorkai
demands that we pause and ask ourselves these questions: What is sacred?
How do we define beauty? What makes great art endure?Melancholic and
mesmerisingly beautiful, this latest novel by the author of Satantango
shows us how to glimpse the divine through extraordinary art and human
endeavour.Winner of Best Translated Book of the Year Award 2014Translated
by Ottilie Mulzet