Reviews with content warning for Animal death - Nieznośna lekkość bytu

It only took a few pages for me to fall in love with this novel. It is somehow both incredibly philosophical and yet completely grounded. This is a book that doesn't shy away from dirty topics, and honestly it can be kind of gross at times. But even then, there's a kind of respect for that dirtiness being a part of what makes us human, and I felt that Kundera treated all the characters with a lot of tenderness, even when they had degrading thoughts and experiences. I think that's quite the feat for a book that features a philanderer and nympomaniac as our male lead, with female main characters who can't help but love him and express a kind of obsessive love and desire to be dominated by him at times.

Considering that, I'm kind of surprised to say I actually thought Tereza and Sabina were rendered with quite a lot of respect and thoughtfulness for their individuality, rather than being relegated to being mere sex objects. I often find women written by men, especially in novels where sex is a major topic, can feel quite one-dimensional or objectified. I didn't feel that way at all about Tereza and Sabina. I thought they were both extremely complex and well-written female characters, I would honestly say probably some of my favourite female characters ever written by a male author.

Altogether, an incredibly thoughtful meditation on the human condition, on surviving the everyday indignities associated with our existence and doing your best to find happiness in whatever form you can. Definitely a novel I need to return to and experience again, because I feel like there's so much more to it that I wasn't able to fully appreciate this time. Highly recommend.

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flo_sg's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective relaxing sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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utracjuszka's review

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challenging emotional reflective sad 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

4.25

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risemini's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.75

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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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jelliestars's review against another edition

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reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

Content Warnings

zezeki's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective slow-paced

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

4.25

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