International Bestseller – Winner of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Fiction
“Far more than a conventional novel. It is a meditation on life, on the erotic, on the nature of men and women and love... full of telling details, truths large and small, to which just about every reader will respond.” — People
In The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Milan Kundera delivers a profound exploration of love, passion, and the complexities of human existence. Set against a backdrop of political turmoil, the novel follows two couples: one, a young woman captivated by a man who cannot escape his own self-destructive infidelities; the other, his mistress and her quietly devoted lover.
In a world where every action feels fleeting, each decision monumental, Kundera deftly examines the tension between lightness and weight—the paradox of living a life where everything happens only once, leaving us with the haunting sensation of life's impermanence. This exploration of love, freedom, and fate is rich with philosophical insights, emotional depth, and sharp social commentary.
A stunning blend of comedy and tragedy, The Unbearable Lightness of Being immerses readers in a world where passion intertwines with politics, and the personal meets the public in unexpected ways. An unforgettable reflection on the human condition that will resonate with readers long after the last page is turned.
The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera - Paperback
The Franco-Czech novelist Milan Kundera (1929 - 2023) was born in Brno and lived in France, his second homeland, since 1975. He is the author of the novels The Joke, Life Is Elsewhere, Farewell Waltz, The Book of Laughter and Forgetting, The Unbearable Lightness of Being, and Immortality, and the short story collection Laughable Loves--all originally in Czech. His later novels, Slowness, Identity, Ignorance, and The Festival of Insignificance, as well as his nonfiction works, The Art of the Novel, Testaments Betrayed, The Curtain, and Encounter, were originally written in French.
