The Unbearable Lightness of Being, by Milan Kundera
I do not have a favorite book, but if I absolutely HAD to choose one I would say “The Unbearable Lightness of Being” by Milan Kundera. Not only for the book itself, but because of the experience I had while reading it.
About 10 years ago I went to brunch with a very good friend of mine and we were talking about something (don’t remember what) and it prompted her to ask me if I had read the book. I said no and proceeded to ask her what most people ask when discussing books. I said “What is it about?” She began thinking, she started to speak, and then retracted each of her partial sentences. She finally said something that can only be understood once you have read it. “You just have to read it. Just read it.”
A couple of weeks later I was walking home from dinner on the historical square close to my loft and I got a call from my boss. He said to unpack my bags because we would no longer be taking the Plaintiff’s (3rd, I might add) deposition in Missouri because we got a voluntary dismissal. To celebrate, I went downtown the next day, got a hotel room and a massage, some room service, and decided to spend the next 24 hours unplugged and reading “The Unbearable Lightness of Being.”
What I have come to think about Kundera, but didn’t know at the time when I read this book, is that he was a man who was so in love with his country and the past and never seemed to get over the heartbreak of losing his home and time. Occasionally when I worry that our country isn’t doing well I think “I wonder if I will be an old woman, speaking of things that are only memories, like Kundera…” I wonder if my children won’t be able to fathom that we had good times and free speech, and if one day my memories will be relics. He is also very succinct about relationships and sex, and the only other thing I can say about this book is “Just read it.” The characters and story are there, but neither of them matter overall. Now doesn’t that sound strange? You just have to read it. Just read it.