The Good Soldier Svejk: Jaroslav Hasek

An attack on war which broadens into a satire on the Ancien Regime of the Austro-Hungarian empire, The Good Soldier Svejk recreates the age-old figure of the simple soldier whose sheer determination to survive brings into question the mighty social and political institutions he confronts. Set in a Central Europe which has long since vanished, Hasek's novel is nevertheless a timeless portrait of the 'little man' doughtily waging his own war against authority.