THE UNBEARABLE LIGHTNESS OF BEING Milan Kundera SIGNED 1st/1st 1984 SEE NOTE

Bexhill Books Limited specialises in rare, collectible first editions of modern literature and non-fiction, primarily from the 20th century. All our books are handled with the utmost care and are described as accurately as possible.

All book dust-jackets, where applicable, are protected in archival-quality cellophane, are are kept out of sunlight. The Unbearable Lightness of Being. 1st Edition, 1st Impression (English).

A Good/Fair condition First Edition, First Impression copy of Kundera's landmark 1984 novel. Dustjacket in fair condition, as pictured, with some tears and scuffs, missing small section from the top of the rear. Pages in perfect condition, no tanning. The autograph for this item is inlaid to the title page by tape, and cannot be verified as being original or a photocopy.

This item comes with a postcard which was received in reply when sending this book to Kundera for autograph. It reads Dear Philip, Milan is very ill, he cannot write, so I found how to do! In Czech it means like'Hello, very friendly'. The front of the postcard is a picture of Leos Janacek in Brno. The signature slip which appears to have been cut out from something Kundera previously signed and taped into the book on return. I cannot determine whether it is original hand signature, or a photocopy. Milan Kundera (born 1 April 1929) is a Czech writer who went into exile in France in 1975, becoming a naturalised French citizen in 1981. Kundera's Czechoslovak citizenship was revoked in 1979, then conferred again in 2019. He "sees himself as a French writer and insists his work should be studied as French literature and classified as such in book stores". Kundera's best-known work is The Unbearable Lightness of Being. Prior to the Velvet Revolution of 1989, the communist régime in Czechoslovakia banned his books. He leads a low-profile life and rarely speaks to the media.

He was thought to be a contender for the Nobel Prize in Literature, and was also a nominee for other awards. He was awarded the 1985 Jerusalem Prize, in 1987 the Austrian State Prize for European Literature, and the 2000 Herder Prize.

In 2021, he received the Golden Order of Merit from the president of Slovenia, Borut Pahor. As new means that the book is in the state that it should have been in when it left the publisher. Fine (F or FN) is "as new" but allowing for the normal effects of time on an unused book that has been protected. A fine book shows no damage.

Very good (VG) describes a book that is worn but untorn. For many collectors this is the minimum acceptable condition for all but the rarest items. Any defects must be noted. Good (G) describes the condition of an average used worn book that is complete.

Fair shows wear and tear but all the text pages and illustrations or maps are present. It may lack endpapers, half-title, and even the title page. All defects must be noted. If the damage renders the text illegible then the book is not even.

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Special Attributes: 1st Edition, Illustrated, Signed
Topic: Classic Soviet literature
Year Printed: 1984
Region: North America
Country/Region of Manufacture: United Kingdom
Binding: Hardback
Original/Facsimile: Original
Place of Publication: New York
Language: English
Author: Milan Kundera
Publisher: Harper & Row
Fiction Subject: Classic Literature
Original/Reproduction: Original