The Portage to San Cristobal of A. H.

“Steiner has taken as his model the political imaginings of an Orwell or Koestler . . . He has produced a philosophic fantasy of remarkable intensity.” —Otto Friedrich, Time

Imagine, thirty years after the end of World War II, Israeli Nazi-hunters, some of whom lost relatives in the gas chambers of Nazi Germany, find a silent old man deep in the Amazon jungle. He is Adolf Hitler. The narrative that follows is a profound and disturbing exploration of the nature of guilt, vengeance, language, and the power of evil—each undiminished over time. George Steiner’s stunning novel, now with a new afterword, will continue to provoke our thinking about Nazi Germany’s unforgettable past.

“An astonishing book.” —Anthony Burgess, author of A Clockwork Orange

“A magnificent and thrilling story.” —Alan Sillitoe, author of The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Runner

“Two readings have convinced me that this is a fiction of extraordinary power and thoughtfulness . . . [A] remarkable novel.” —Bernard Bergonzi, Times Literary Supplement

“In this tour de force Mr. Steiner makes his reader re-examine, to whatever conclusions each may choose, a history from which we would prefer to avert our eyes.” —Edmund Fuller, The Wall Street Journal