Radio Prague International named Bohumil Hrabal’s Too Loud a Solitude one of its Czech Books You Must Read. It’s an insightful and informative post that I highly recommend. Here’s a comment about the book from Esther Peters, Associate Director of the Center for East European and Russian Studies at the University of Chicago:

“The world would be a better place if more people read this book. It is an incredibly engaging read. It is so much fun and yet it is incredibly intellectual. It makes you think. Every time I read it there are new things to think about and it is one of the few books that I think combines these aspects so perfectly that you can delve into it, love reading it and just enjoy the process of reading.

“It is about knowledge, language, process and ritual, but it is also just a good story. That combination of things is quite rare I think. It challenges you to think, but keeps you entertained at the same time.

“Every time I read it something new pops out. I think that is another thing. It changes with the reader. I think that it probably changed with Hrabal as he wrote it. It is something you can take with you. It is a companion.”

Peters delves into why Hrabal is so difficult to translate, and the article talks about the three versions of this book, how it was semi-autobiographical, and more. Check it out, along with the other “must read” books they have highlighted.

My post on Too Loud a Solitude can be found here.