Abstract
Arthur Koestler's Darkness at Noon served as the pioneer publication denouncing Stalinist strategies. First released in 1940 in London, Jewish publishers reissued subsequent French editions of Darkness at Noon in the mid-1940s amidst a climate of Communism, facing major obstacles that included a paper shortage. The Communists regarded paper as a rare commodity in war-torn Europe, and it would not easily be turned over to anti-Communist movements. Publicly heralded in France, Darkness at Noon survived Cold War Communist censorship and underground book sales. While French Communist party members abhorred Koestler's message and his successful publications, Western critics and democratic-minded European readers clung to the revolutionary statements envisioned in the book. This essay describes the difficulties, from lack of funds to political warnings, the author and publishers experienced when attempting to release the work. It also follows the various reactions to Darkness at Noon, both exceedingly positive and sharply negative.
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