Czech-French writer Milan Kundera took on life’s absurdity through satire and poetic prose
- The 94-year-old author of The Unbearable Lightness of Being died at his flat in Paris after a prolonged illness
- Kundera was frequently touted as a favourite to win the Nobel Prize for literature, but he never claimed the coveted honour
Milan Kundera, the author of The Unbearable Lightness of Being whose dark, provocative novels delved into the enigma of the human condition, has died, a spokeswoman for the Milan Kundera Library in his native city of Brno said on Wednesday. He was 94.
“Unfortunately I can confirm that Mr Milan Kundera passed away yesterday (Tuesday) after a prolonged illness,” she said.
Kundera died at his flat in Paris, France, his adoptive country where he had lived since his emigration from Communist-ruled Czechoslovakia in 1975.
“Not only Czech literature, but world literature as well has lost one of the greatest contemporary writers, and one of the most translated writers too,” Tomas Kubicek, director of the Kundera library, told the public Czech TV.
Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said Kundera was able to “appeal to whole generations of readers across all continents” with his work.
Kundera was frequently touted as a favourite to win the Nobel Prize for literature, but he never claimed the coveted honour.
