Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - Nieznośna lekkość bytu

absolute garbage book. the word "unbearable" accurately describes this book. sexist narrator. sexist characters. you could feel the hatred towards women in the way that they were portrayed. especially compared to male characters, which were depicted in neutral tone of voice. disgusting scenes. LOTS of gaslighting, mental and sexual abuse, lack of consent etc.

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onthehummingbirds's review against another edition

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reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

It's called The Unbearable Lighteness of Being because when you finish it that's exactly how you feel

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serendipitysbooks's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

The Unbearable Lightness of Being is partly the story of Tomas and Tereza’s relationship, as well as relationships involving Franz and Sabina, set against the background of the Russian invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968, and partly a philosophical tome. I frequently felt like I was reading a non-fiction text rather than a work of fiction. The big picture philosophical ruminations took me out of the story but were an interesting way of considering the characters and their actions. None of the characters are faithful to each other or especially likeable. The author’s depiction of their sex lives felt overly prurient and left me feeling a little icky. I think this may have been partly because it was written in the third person, from the point of view of an outside observer, but also some of the male attitudes had me cringing. I’m glad to have finally read this one. It definitely pushed my conception of what a novel could be and there were passages of beautiful and insightful writing. As to whether I liked it, I’m still trying to decide. I definitely liked parts of it; other aspects not so much - or not at all.

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lucyatoz's review against another edition

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challenging dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This novel by Milan Kundera is about the lives of two women, two men and a dog. It takes place in the late 1960's and early 1970's and includes the time of the Prague Spring in what was then Czechoslovakia.

The lives of the 4 central characters, Tomas, Tereza, Franz and Sabina are complex and complicated with love and infidelity running through the whole story.

With references to sex and with some swearing language throughout, this is heavy read in contrast to its title. It is quite a tragic tale in many ways with moments of lightness spotting along the horizon.

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