RIP, Milan Kundera

A few days ago, one of my favorite writers, Milan Kundera, died. I meant to write this particular blog entry earlier, but am only getting around to it now. Hopefully, this is a case of better late than never, although even then, I do recognize that this should have been published earlier.

In any case, I began reading Kundera either in the late nineties or the early 2000's. He was a writer from what was then Czechoslovakia, a country which, of course, no longer exists. 

Kundera was born in Brno, the one major Czech city which I actually got to visit, however briefly, during my surprise afternoon visit to that country back in the summer of 2019. That said, I did not see anything that obviously was linked to Kundera while there.  

The first book that I read from him happened to be his first: "The Joke." This was while I was attending Rutgers, if memory serves correctly. Again, either very late nineties or very early 2000's (I graduated in May of 2001). It was a good book, and so I then made a point of reading his most famous book, "The Unbearable Lightness of Being." I liked those two books enough that I began to read a number of his other works, as well. 

In 2009 or 2010, I went to the 92nd Street Y and attended a program on the works of Kundera, although I remember being incredibly tired on that particular evening. My focus was not really there, so I hardly got anything from it, admittedly. Still, it probably serves as a sign of just how much I really did like the works of Kundera. 

He was a great writer, who's works proved that art is an international language, at least at it's best. He was from the eastern part of the Iron Curtain, and spoke a language of which not a single word was familiar to me. Yet somehow, his writing resonated with me, as I obviously became a fan. That, to me, is the mark of a great writer.

RIP, Milan Kundera. You will be missed. 

Milan Kundera, who wrote 'The Unbearable Lightness of Being,' dies at 94 July 12, 20236:29 AM ET Heard on Morning Edition Andrew Limbong headshot Andrew Limbong

https://www.npr.org/2023/07/12/1151021446/milan-kundera-dies-unbearable-lightness-of-being

Milan Kundera, Literary Star Who Skewered Communist Rule, Dies at 94 by Daniel Lewis July 12, 2023:

The author of “The Unbearable Lightness of Being,” he was known for sexually charged novels that captured the suffocating absurdity of life in his native Czechoslovakia.  Give this article   228 Milan Kundera, in a gray suit, sits on a park bench. Milan Kundera in 1984, when his novel “The Unbearable Lightness of Being” became an instant success and later the basis of a movie.阅读简体中文版閱讀繁體中文版 Milan Kundera, the Communist Party outcast who became a global literary star with mordant, sexually charged novels that captured the suffocating absurdity of life in the workers’ paradise of his native Czechoslovakia, died on Tuesday in Paris. He was 94.  A spokeswoman for Gallimard, Mr. Kundera’s publisher in France, confirmed the death, saying it came “after a prolonged illness.”  A correction was made on July 12, 2023: An earlier version of this obituary misstated the given name of a Czech composer. He was Leos Janacek, not Jaroslav. When we learn of a mistake, we acknowledge it with a correction. If you spot an error, please let us know at nytnews@nytimes.com.Learn more  A version of this article appears in print on July 13, 2023, Section A, Page 1 of the New York edition with the headline: Milan Kundera, 94, Dies; Czech Author Gave Comical Flair to Despair. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe READ 228 COMMENTS Give this article   228 ADVERTISEMENT  SKIP ADVERTISEMENT Site Index Site Information Navigation © 2023 The New York Times Company NYTCoContact UsAccessibilityWork with usAdvertiseT Brand StudioYour Ad ChoicesPrivacy PolicyTerms of ServiceTerms of SaleSite MapHelpSubscriptions

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/12/world/europe/milan-kundera-dead.html

The Farewell Party by Milan Kundera (1972)

https://astrofella.wordpress.com/2019/08/29/the-farewell-party-milan-kundera/

Milan Kundera: The Unbearable Lightness of Being author dies aged 94 The Czech novelist found himself silenced by the communist regime at home, but achieved international fame with playfully philosophical fiction   ‘To be a writer means to discover a truth’: Milan Kundera – a life in quotes  Richard Lea and Sian Cain Wed 12 Jul 2023 05.45 EDT

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/jul/12/milan-kundera-the-unbearable-lightness-of-being-author-dies-aged-94?CMP=fb_gu&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook&fbclid=IwAR3iWfKRzfYLod0m9hvB7IacR6m3uS_BrmyY66dsC14AMaHOjgLHHtFd-D0#Echobox=1689155642