Milan Kundera, Noted Czech Writer, Dies At 94

Czech-born writer Milan Kundera, author of the novel "The Unbearable Lightness of Being" who lived nearly five decades in Paris after emigrating in disillusionment from his Communist-ruled homeland, has died at the age of 94, Robert Muller and Jan Lopatka reported for Reuters.

Photo Insert: Kundera was born in Brno in 1929 but emigrated to France in 1975 after being ostracized for criticizing the 1968 Soviet invasion of Communist Czechoslovakia.

The Moravian Library (MZK) in the Czech city of Brno, which houses Kundera's personal collection, said he had died in his Paris apartment on Tuesday after a long illness.

Kundera won global accolades for the way he depicted themes and characters that floated between the mundane reality of everyday life and the lofty world of ideas.

He was a member of the Czech Communist Party but he slammed Russia for its invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968.

Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said his works "reached whole generations of readers across all continents" while President Petr Pavel called him a "world-class writer." Pavel added: "With his fate in life, he symbolized the eventful history of our country in the 20th century. Kundera's legacy will live on in his works."

Kundera was born in Brno in 1929 but emigrated to France in 1975 after being ostracized for criticizing the 1968 Soviet invasion of Communist Czechoslovakia that crushed the Prague Spring liberal reform movement.

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