Sanctuary of the Guilty

'Nobody has yet written so bravely and honestly about the abuse, the hardship, and the emotional and psychological terror of the catholic seminary as Laszlo Malota. He introduces the world of the seminary, closed to outsiders, with sober objectivity. He depicts the atmosphere of the seminary with such astonishing vividity that you feel that you yourself have become a student of the seminary.'

'Laszlo Malota has written a breathtaking book, Sanctuary of the Guilty that everyone should read for such a book will change perspectives. I hope that one day, we will not only read it but see it as a movie. In the right hands, I am sure the movie would be fantastic.'

David Paul Kirkpatrick
(Former President of the Paramount Pictures, Walt Disney Pictures, Motion Picture Group.)

 

Malota's book Sanctuary of the Guilty (A Gyalázatosak Szentélye) topped the Best Seller's list in Europe, Hungary. The Sanctuary of the Guilty overtook Bridget Jones's Diary by H. Fielding, The Lord Of The Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien and Imre Kertesz's novel Fatelessness (Sorstalanság), which won a Nobel Prize. The Sanctuary of the Guilty was so successful that pirated versions of the book were circulated widely in the country, alongside the Nobel prize-winning work.

 

It received the following review from Miklós Jancsó (awarded Best Director at the Cannes Film Festival for his work on Red Psalm):

'Laszlo Malota you honoured me with a copy of your novel. I read this novel three times. I like it. I like it because of its irony. I like the author's courage, his incredible bravery. Are you aware of the importance of it? Do you know that you have stirred up a hornet's nest? It involves persecution, anger. Perhaps involving stakes or not. Or maybe, all things considered, there could also be an auto-da-fe. A truly great film could be made from it. That would cause a huge scandal. It would be an incredible world scandal.'