In 1953, Jose Saramago submitted a novel to his publishers. Thirty-six years later, he heard back.

"A fluid and imaginative translation by Margaret Jull Costa... A masterly creation: pessimistic without being bleak, lyrical without being sentimental... Saramago tears back that curtain to reveal not only the stage on which life is performed but also backstage, under unflattering working lights; to show humanity at its most anxious, its most vulnerable and most true" -- James Runcie Independent "For admirers of his work...the rescue of this novel from oblivion is something to be grateful for. The translator, Margaret Jull Costa, as ever, does a splendid job" Times Literary Supplement "Not only does it illuminate the slow development of a radically original artist, but it is an interesting novel in its own right" -- Ursula Le Guin The Guardian "This is one of Saramago's early works but his eye for psychological nuance and his gift for sympathy are already in evidence" New Statesman "Skylight is a deeply affecting novel, the work of an already adroit writer who marshals his characters with assurance" Evening Standard

Jose Saramago is one of the most important international writers of the last hundred years. Born in Portugal in 1922, he was in his sixties when he came to prominence as a writer with the publication of Baltasar and Blimunda. A huge body of work followed, translated into almost fifty languages, and in 1998 he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. Saramago died in June 2010.