The Hideout

“[Hostovsky] explores madness, heroism, and salvation in this intense, dreamlike novella. . . This captivating novella dramatizes one man’s existential conflict within the larger, worldwide conflagration.” — Publishers Weekly

“The Hideout is an important work of existentialism that recalls Albert Camus’s The Stranger and Jean-Paul Sartre’s Nausea in terms of probing the reality of self-knowledge and the nature of good and evil. Though dark, the novel has a poetry all its own. . . The Hideout is not without horrifying moments of violence, but it offers a glimpse of transcendence while shaking one to the core. . . This English translation of Egon Hostovský’s Czech masterpiece creates an unforgettable account of a war refugee in his darkest hour.” —  Scott Neuffer, in Shelf Awareness

“A dark firecracker of a book…tantalisingly knitting together the philosophical novel, the existential thriller, the spy romance and the noir war story…a real find.” — Bookanista

“Whether charting transient freedom in Paris, “city of light rustlings, of sweetly secret speech, of blue grayness”, or chronicling inner turmoil, this overlooked classic is both beautiful and intense.” — Glasgow Herald


“A superb writer.” – Milan Kundera

“The Hideout‘ is important as an encouraging example of a new spiritual trend in European literature.” – Free World

“A remarkable novel… As absorbing reading it matches any popular novel, yet it does so without the customary devices.” – The New Masses

“Hostovsky delights in discoveries of the depths and oddities, the strange courses and subtle transformations of human souls… A forceful language rich in images adds to the pleasure of reading.” – Saturday Review