Which way the wind blows
In totalitarian systems, there is no limit to the perversity and pettiness of mind which can land you in a...
How to hide a poem (II)
Listening time: under 5 minutes.  This disturbing quotation is striking on several levels.  By the Hungarian poet György Faludy concerning...
The loss of safe space
A piercing definition of where authoritarian regimes can end up: an all-controlling totalitarian nightmare, regardless of the underlying...
Like atoms of radium
A fine metaphor for dots of kindness shining through darkness; Grossman's hope for the future is largely vested in the...
A bulwark against brain-washing
Listening time: under 9 minutes.  Sadly, some things in the state of the world are driving me to spend more...
The yearning for freedom
As far as I can see, from both history and 'current events', there's not much evidence to suggest that the...
Beware the sunset (especially if it’s beautiful)
A striking example of the tendency of totalitarian ideologies to corrupt the mind: no-one means what they say, nothing is...
How to write in prison
This first-hand account by the Hungarian poet György Faludy (1910-2006) of how to procure writing materials in prison is all...
Where dying isn’t enough
Suzanne, later the second wife of the Hungarian poet György Faludy, seems to have been a lovely person, with strong...
Now, what shall I write?
The Hungarian poet György Faludy (1910-2006) decides what to write on the eve of his execution. In the event, he...
As piercing as …
This piercing stare at a little girl is disturbing for its lack of empathy or even warmth towards a child.  ...
Normality and absurdity
Grossman is a master of capturing tiny details that show something touchingly ordinary in an extraordinary setting. Here, modelled on...
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