num_pages: 307
description: Milan Kundera's critically acclaimed Life Is Elsewhere is an epic of adolescence; an ironic tale that tenderly erodes sacrosanct values such as childhood, motherhood, revolution, and even poetry. Jaromil is a ridiculous and touching character, horrifying and totally innocent. And a true poet. He is Rimbaud, entrapped by the communist revolution, entrapped in a somber farce. "Once again we observe the narrator's cool wit probe and peel away layers of self-delusion and masquerade…But best of all is the recognition that Milan Kundera offers a very special blend of sympathy and cynicism, irony and affability, that is unmatched in our literature." -- Book Week
language: English
title: Life Is Elsewhere
titlecomplete: Life Is Elsewhere
characters: Jaromil
genres: Fiction, Philosophy, Roman, Literature, Czech Literature, Classics, Novels, Contemporary, 20th Century, Literary Fiction
ratings_count: 18658
awards: awardedAt: 94723200000
name: Prix Médicis Etranger, awardedAt: 157795200000
name: National Book Award Finalist
category: Translation
publisher: Penguin Books