The Greatest Czech, Japanese "Postmodern" Books of All Time

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This list represents a comprehensive and trusted collection of the greatest books. Developed through a specialized algorithm, it brings together 305 'best of' book lists to form a definitive guide to the world's most acclaimed books. For those interested in how these books are chosen, additional details can be found on the rankings page.

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Postmodern

Postmodernism is a literary movement that emerged in the mid-20th century, characterized by a rejection of traditional narrative structures and a focus on self-reflexivity and intertextuality. Postmodern literature often features fragmented narratives, unreliable narrators, and a blurring of the lines between reality and fiction. It is a genre that challenges the notion of a single, objective truth and instead embraces the idea of multiple perspectives and interpretations. Postmodern literature is often seen as a response to the modernist movement that preceded it, and it continues to be a popular and influential category for contemporary writers.

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  1. 1. The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera

    Set against the backdrop of the Prague Spring period of Czechoslovak history, the novel explores the philosophical concept of Nietzsche's eternal return through the intertwined lives of four characters: a womanizing surgeon, his intellectual wife, his naïve mistress, and her stoic lover. The narrative delves into their personal struggles with lightness and heaviness, freedom and fate, love and betrayal, and the complexities of human relationships, all while offering a profound meditation on the nature of existence and the paradoxes of life.

    The 114th Greatest Book of All Time
  2. 2. The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami

    A man's search for his wife's missing cat evolves into a surreal journey through Tokyo's underbelly, where he encounters a bizarre collection of characters with strange stories and peculiar obsessions. As he delves deeper, he finds himself entangled in a web of dreamlike scenarios, historical digressions, and metaphysical investigations. His reality becomes increasingly intertwined with the dream world as he grapples with themes of fate, identity, and the dark side of the human psyche.

    The 277th Greatest Book of All Time
  3. 3. The Book of Laughter and Forgetting by Milan Kundera

    This novel is a blend of fiction, autobiography, and philosophical musings that explores the nature of forgetting, the power of laughter, and the struggle for personal and political freedom. Set against the backdrop of the political turmoil in Czechoslovakia in the 20th century, it follows the interconnected stories of various characters, including a man who is expelled from the Communist Party, a young woman in love with a man whose father was a political prisoner, and a couple who flee to America. Throughout, the book delves into the ways in which personal and collective memories shape identity and history.

    The 783rd Greatest Book of All Time
  4. 4. The Box Man by Kobo Abé

    "The Box Man" is a surreal narrative about a man who chooses to live as a homeless individual, inside a box, in Tokyo. The protagonist, a former doctor, narrates his experiences and observations from within the box, and the narrative often blurs the line between reality and hallucination. The book is a philosophical exploration of identity, anonymity, and the nature of existence, challenging the reader's perception of what it means to be an individual in society.

    The 1930th Greatest Book of All Time
  5. 5. Kafka On The Shore by Haruki Murakami

    "Kafka On The Shore" is a surreal and philosophical novel by Haruki Murakami that follows two parallel storylines. The first is that of Kafka Tamura, a 15-year-old boy who runs away from home to escape an Oedipal prophecy and searches for his missing mother and sister. The second storyline follows Nakata, an elderly man who has lost his memory but possesses the ability to communicate with cats. As their paths converge, they encounter strange and mystical events that challenge their perceptions of reality and identity. The novel explores themes of fate, free will, and the human psyche, and is a captivating and thought-provoking read.

    The 1969th Greatest Book of All Time
  6. 6. 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami

    The novel is a complex and surreal narrative that intertwines the lives of two protagonists: a woman assassin who becomes embroiled in a mysterious and dangerous cult, and a male writer caught in a complicated love triangle. As they navigate their respective challenges, they unknowingly cross into an alternate reality, referred to as 1Q84, where the lines between fact and fiction blur. The novel explores themes of love, fate, and the power of the individual against the constraints of a conformist society.

    The 2624th Greatest Book of All Time
  7. 7. The Engineer of Human Souls by Josef Škvorecký

    The novel is a semi-autobiographical narrative of a Czechoslovakian writer who has become a professor at a Canadian university, teaching American literature. The narrative switches between his current life in Canada and his memories of the past in Czechoslovakia, including the Nazi occupation and the Communist regime. The book presents a complex portrayal of the life of an intellectual in exile and the challenges of cultural assimilation, while also exploring themes of love, politics, and the power of literature.

    The 2739th Greatest Book of All Time
  8. 8. City, Sister, Silver by Jáchym Topol

    This novel follows the journey of a young Czech man, Potok, as he navigates the tumultuous period of the Velvet Revolution and its aftermath. The story is filled with surreal and often disturbing imagery as it explores themes of chaos, transformation, and the struggle for identity in a rapidly changing world. Potok's adventures take him from the crumbling infrastructure of post-communist Czechoslovakia to the burgeoning world of Western Europe, and his experiences reflect the larger societal upheaval of the time.

    The 4105th Greatest Book of All Time

Reading Statistics

Click the button below to see how many of these books you've read!

Download

If you're interested in downloading this list as a CSV file for use in a spreadsheet application, you can easily do so by clicking the button below. Please note that to ensure a manageable file size and faster download, the CSV will include details for only the first 500 books.

Download