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I’m not going to give this book a “star�� rating because can’t decide on one. There were parts of the novel that I found fascinating, parts that were completely confusing, and parts that were downright irrelevant. The beginning of the novel is very engaging. It sucks the reader right in. I was immediately interested in Kundera’s philosophy. Case in point: “There is a certain part of all of us that lives outside of time. Perhaps we become aware of our age only at exceptional moments and most of the time we are ageless.�� I also loved when he proposed the idea about a married couple being asked at the time of death whether they want to spend eternity together or never see each other again. Why didn’t he expound upon this? I think he let too many good ideas drop off.

Unfortunately, as Kudera begins fucking with the time-line, it gets really convoluted and spits the reader right back out. I get what he’s going for, problem is, it gets a little clumsy. The language is still beautiful, and there are some special moments: “I can savor drowsing and waking, that marvelous swinging between wakefulness and sleep which in itself is enough to keep us from regretting our birth.��

I loved his observations about classical artists portrayal of expressions in paintings and sculptures. “A face is beautiful because it reveals the presence of thought whereas the moment of laughter man does not think.��

In the end, I thought it started really strong, got bogged down in the middle and ended on a high note.