Reading 1001 discussion

The Unbearable Lightness of Being - 5 stars.
This is truly beautifully written book by Kundera, and according to my opinion his best. It explores human relationships in such a magnificent way, his prose is just beautiful, there are so many nicely put thoughts. I enjoyed every page. The book is not concerned very much with the plot, but explores human bondage and feelings; marriage and infidelity. It also tackles morality, politics, emigration.

I was glued to this book & very much enjoyed it. I liked the philosophical writing and may even become the vegetarian I have wanted to be for a while because of this book! There were just a few sections that were a little OTT with the philosophising and if it the writing had focused more on the characters overall I would have given it the elusive 5 stars. I highly recommend this read.

As I've said before, I like plot. This book does not have a lot of plot, but it does have a lot of sex, including plenty of infidelity, and a lot of philosophical thinking. It was well written and there were absolutely sections that made me stop and ponder, but overall it was not really my type of book.

read this is 2009, my review; Comedy and tragedy, the novel looks at human existence. Geographically it connects Prague, Geneva, Paris, Thailand and the United States. It explores the relationship of husband and wife (Tomas and Tereza) and their beloved dog named Karenin.Tomas is epic womanizer. Tereza has a strong hold over Tomas through her weakness but doesn't realize this until they are old. "when people are fairly young and the musical composition of their lives is still in its opening bars, they can go about writing it together and exchange motifs......" Secondary characters are Sebina and Franz. Sebina is both Tomas and Franz's lover. The bowler hat is a major motif.

The Unbearable Lightness of Being, although light on plot, is a truly unique and wonderful reading experience. Our four main characters are tied to each other through relationships and sex and although Tomas, the primary character, is a flagrant womanizer, he is also capable of deep sacrifice for love. The book takes place during the Prague Spring uprising and the subsequent Russia invasion of Czechoslovakia. In addition, Kundera, the author, speaks directly to the reader about his characters, his philosophy of "lightness" and "weight", and even a bit about himself. One comes to understand the characters in a unique way in that I found myself caring about each of them while at the same time keeping constantly in mind that they were characters. This particular balance allowed the book to pivot from realistic to absurdly extreme without causing me to be judgmental. Rather, I was delighted to be so stretched. I gave it 5 stars.