The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera
Set against the backdrop of the Prague Spring period of Czechoslovak history, the novel explores the philosophical concept of Nietzsche's eternal return through the intertwined lives of four characters: a womanizing surgeon, his intellectual wife, his naïve mistress, and her stoic lover. The narrative delves into their personal struggles with lightness and heaviness, freedom and fate, love and betrayal, and the complexities of human relationships, all while offering a profound meditation on the nature of existence and the paradoxes of life.
The 120th greatest book of all time
- Published
- 1984
- Nationality
- Czech
- Type
- Fiction
- Pages
- 200-400
- Words
- 85,000
- Original Language
- Czech
If you're interested in seeing the ranking details on this book go here
This book is on the following lists:
- 5th on As if You Don't Have Enough to Read, Fiction Edition (New York Times)
- 6th on The Ideal Library (Book)
- 31st on The 500 best books of all time from Culture Café users (Culture Café)
- 35th on Big Read (German) (Germany)
- 35th on Kanon na koniec wieku (Canon at the end of the century) (Rzeczpospolita (newspaper))
- 46th on Waterstone's Books of the Century (LibraryThing)
- 47th on Our Users' Favorite Books of All Time (The Greatest Books Users)
- 47th on The Telegraph’s 100 Novels Everyone Should Read (Telegraph)
- 65th on 100 Books of Classical and Modern Foreign Literature (The Union of Russian Writers)
- 84th on Harvard Book Store Staff's Favorite 100 Books (Harvard Book Store)
- 92nd on Big Read (Hungarian) (Hungaria)
- 95th on Big Read (Bulgarian) (Bulgaria)
- 112th on The Novel 100: A Ranking of the Greatest Novels of All Time (The Novel 100)
- 191st on The Big Read (BBC)
- 222 Best Books of All Time That Deserve a Spot on Your Bookshelf, With Picks from Bestselling Authors and Indie Booksellers (Parade)
- 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die (The Book)
- Harold Bloom's The Western Canon (The Western Canon (Book) by Harold Bloom)
- Zeit Literaturkanon (https://www.librarything.com/award/335/ZEIT-Literaturkanon)
- 100 Books to Read from Eastern Europe and Central Asia (New East Digital Archive)
- 75 Books Every Woman Should Read (Jezebel)
- The Bigger Read List (English PEN)
- Best Foreign Work of Fiction Chosen by Francophone Writers (French literary magazine Transfuge)
- 1000 Novels Everyone Must Read (The Guardian)
- From Zero to Well-Read in 100 Books (Jeff O'Neal at Bookriot.com)
- 200 Books That Shaped 200 Years of Literature (The Center for Fiction)
- The 100 Best Books in the World (AbeBooks.de (in German))
- 50 Memorable Books from 50 Years of Books to Remember (The New York Public Library)