The Authoritarian Playbook: Through the Eyes of a Hungarian Novelist

Born in 1967, Krisztina Tóth is one of the most popular and best-known Hungarian authors and the recipient of numerous awards. She studied sculpting and literature in Budapest, spending two years in Paris during her university years. She currently lives in Switzerland. To date, Krisztina Tóth has published three novels, eight volumes of short stories and twelve volumes of poetry and over twenty children’s books some of which treat topics that are considered unusual, even taboo (Mum Had an Operation; A Story for Nose-Blowers). 

For the stage, her musical Wanderer of the Years explains passing and letting go to children, whereas Pokémon Go and The Bat are for adults. Many of her works have been translated into twenty languages and can be read in English, German, French, Italian, Czech and Spanish, among others. Her latest novel “Eye of the Monkey” was published in October 2025 (and introduced at the Brooklyn Library) to great critical acclaim in the New York Times, Financial Times and Asymptote. 

The novel attempts to understand the workings of an authoritarian society and individual responsibility through a great deal of black humor and exciting personal stories. Her play “The Bat”, to be premiered this March in New York, examines the issues of authoritarian society and individual beliefs and fears through the use of absurdity and dark humor. Photo credit Wavrik Gábor