Austria Behind the Mask

'A skilfully blended mixture of memoir, political analysis, and history Lendvai carefully traces the evolution of Austrias party politics and reserves his most trenchant criticism for the present day. -- Financial Times Engrossing fascinating. Even for those with no particular interest in Austria, this book is worth reading for the worldly wisdom with which Lendvai anatomises the workings of power. -- Literary Review 'In this book, Paul Lendvai does for post1945 Austria what Stefan Zweig has done for fin de sicle Vienna. Read it.' -- Ivan Krastev, Chairman of the Board, Center for Liberal Strategies 'Lendvai ... is today the doyen of Austrian journalism ... personally acquainted with the great and powerful, both a prescient observer and a man on the scene ... This book has it all, unfolding a moral picture of today's Austria via the lessons of the past--above all, a relentless study of the country's political class ... If this dedicated and knowledgeable observer is right, Austria's struggle with itself will remain on the international agenda for some time to come.' -- Neue Zurcher Zeitung 'Paul Lendvai is a phenomenon ... the most important journalist in Austria. An ice-cold analyst whose takes on Eastern and Central Europe are second-to-none. A world-class journalist.' -- Karel Schwarzenberg, former foreign minister of the Czech Republic 'With Lendvai, it's easy to use words like grand seigneur ... a profound connoisseur of Eastern and Southern Europe ... who has mastered the art of political analysis ... Based on interviews with more than 50 politicians and other public figures ... the book ... is to be understood as a "wake-up call" ... Lendvai sees things where others prefer to look the other way.' -- Salzburger Nachrichten 'One of Austria's most profound journalists ... Lendvai takes no prisoners ... Absolutely worth reading, and not only for those interested in history.' -- Vorarlberger Nachrichten 'Erudite and incisive, this unsparing but fair analysis of Austrian post-War politics by an insider-outsider is vintage Paul Lendvai.' -- Shalini Randeria, President and Rector, Central European University Vienna 'When Paul Lendvai writes about Austria, his gratitude is mixed with a touch of melancholy, and an enduring astonishment that both he and the country have made it this far . . . [Lendvai] has known everyone with something to say in this country since the 1960s . . . The upheavals of recent years have confirmed that Austrian politics is not a place of safetybut Lendvai would very much like it to be. -- Suddeutsche Zeitung Fascinating and informative as close and true and deep an account as you are likely to read If you want a sound grounding in modern Austrian politics, this book is the best place to start. -- Jildy Sauce

Paul Lendvai, a Hungarian-born Austrian journalist and author, was the Vienna correspondent for the Financial Times for over twenty years. His most recent books, both published by Hurst, are The Hungarians (second edition); and Orbn: Europes New Strongman, which won the Prix du Livre Europen.