Read The World - Czech Republic - The Unbearable Lightness Of Being

Book: The Unbearable Lightness of Being
Author: Milan Kundera
Pages: 320
Book takes place in the country: YES
Author is from the country: YES
I have visited: NO

This is my 21st read of this year.  I finished this book on February 14, 2019.

This is my first audiobook of the year.  I don't listen to too many audiobooks because I tend to get distracted while listening and start thinking of other things.  Then I continually feel like I need to rewind and it takes me a long time to finish it.

But this time, I had a paint by number that I had picked up.  They have always looked fun to me, so I got one of those and while I painted, I listened.  And then while I grocery shopped, I listened.  And while I packed lunches, I listened.  I think if I do it more often, I will get better at listening and not "wandering".

This is the story of Thomas and Tereza, Sabina and Franz during the Russion Invasion of the Czech Republic in the 1960s.  Tereza is in love with Thomas who is a incorrigible womanizer.  His mistress is Sabina, but Thomas is not her only lover.  Franz is also in love with Sabina, but married to someone else.

The main characters are Thomas and Tereza, and their lives together.  Even thought Tereza is midly aware of his womanizing, she stays with him until the end of their lives.  Thomas knows he doesn't deserve her, but he cannot help who he is.

The author describes the thoughts and feelings of all the characters, and works at getting to the core of understanding who they are.  All of thier misgivings, all of their fears and doubts, are brought to light in this novel.  The book delves into the difficulty that is life and the struggles that many people have on a daily basis when in relationships with others.

The author's one line says it all: "Being - of the human life - is unbearably light because it is lived in a straight line - there is no true interpretation, nothing to grab onto, as our lives are driven forward by chance and fortuity."

I don't know how I felt about this book.  Again - I think listening to it didn't do me any favors.  But again - my prudishness came into play here as well because there is a lot of infidelity in this book, a lot of talk about sex, and a lot of talk about the human body.  This is just a warning in case you feel that this is a book you might be interested in.  I know there was deeper meaning around these parts of the book, but just so you are aware.

Will this stay as my Czech book?   Maybe.  I need to think about it some more.

Stars: 3