'A masterpiece ... the greatest novel of the Holocaust' The Guardian

A haunting, dreamlike portrayal of the encroaching horror of the Holocaust onto a genteel MittelEuropean resort town

Badenheim, a resort town near the forests of Vienna, is preparing for the arts festival of the summer season. The hotel workers and local tradespeople rush to prepare the small town for the influx of vacationers. But just as the season is getting into full swing, a small note appears on a municipal notice board: the Sanitation Department is announcing an increase in its jurisdiction. No one knows what the Sanitation Department is, but no matter – the festival carries on.

Soon inspectors are spread all over town, bringing estrangement, suspicion and mistrust wherever they go. Meanwhile, the guests carry on pursuing their pleasures and the townspeople attend to their troubles. Then another announcement appears: all Jews must register with the Sanitation Department.

An allegory, satire and fable all in one, Badenheim 1939 is a story of denial and normalisation, masterfully creating an atmosphere of impending dread and horror. Gripping and unforgettable, this is one of most intriguing and eerie books ever written about the Holocaust.

"A small masterpiece" - The New York Times Book Review

"Memory and trauma go hand in hand [in this] horribly effective analogy of the crushing effect of the Holocaust" - Observer

"Aharon Appelfeld's controlled fiction compresses large themes into small spaces... He is a worthy successor to Kafka'" - The New York Times Book Review

"Like a bedtime story written by Kafka" - The Tablet

"Like something by the Brothers Grimm crossed with Kafka and Isaac Bashevis Singer" - The New York Times