Life is somewhere else

Jaromil is a poet, so how can one be a poet under a dictatorial regime? A regime where freedom of thought is not available. It should be noted that Jaromil has never enjoyed freedom, suffocated by his mother's love who follows him wherever he goes, even in the bed of lovers; and suffocated by the ideologies and slogans of the Communist Party; suffocated by that father whom he never got to know; suffocated by his love for a girl he does not find beautiful; and suffocated by his narrow view of the world... However, the novel "Life Elsewhere" is not only the story of a young poet, but rather a novel about love for others and love for oneself; a novel full of truths, and of Konderian sweetness, with astonishing sincerity, and humanity. It is a novel that moves the feelings of every human being, because each of us has wondered at least once about the place of life, and its extent. The novel "Life Elsewhere" is a wonderful literary work about literature, and about those who write in it, about life and those who live it. The events of the novel take place during World War II and the period that followed, telling the story of Jaromil, this boy who was a victim of a marriage filled with suffering that led his life to poetry... The novel "Life Elsewhere" is the third work in Kondera's creative journey, and it is one of those rare works that not only make us feel the same upon rereading after years, but also give us a sense of completeness... It is worth mentioning that this novel won the Great Atlas Award in 2012, an award given annually by the French Embassy for translated works.