One of the few books that I chose to read a second time. And I don’t regret it. If at all, it’s gotten better with reading it again. Mostly because I’m now able to fully appreciate the quality and style of Kundera in addition to the topic of love and coincidence he’s writing about.
You know from almost the start that the ending will be tragic. The plot skips forth and back freely, providing depth and later on explaining how thing happened that you knew will happen. The structure of the book is excellent and worth any analysis that thousands of readers have done much more competently and thoroughly than I care to do.
What I love about this book the most is already contained in the title. You could also call it butterfly effect. Minor ripples in time, a coincidence here, a different choice there and life would be totally different. At the same time, a character remains what it is and will develop the way he does, notwithstanding what coincidences he will face. The disposition underneath is set even if the circumstances change.
There’s more to this book. It’s a political book with Kundera looking back at his Czech homeland from a distance of time and place. It’s a philosophical book about what drives us humans as individuals. And above all, it’s a great love story.