What order should I read Milan Kundera's books in?

Publication order is a safe choice; the full list is above. Most readers start with The Unbearable Lightness of.

What is Milan Kundera's last book?

La Insoportable Levedad Del Ser (2017).

What is Milan Kundera's most famous book?

The Unbearable Lightness of (1984) is Milan Kundera's most widely read book.

Which Milan Kundera books have been adapted?

2 books have been adapted for film or TV, including The Joke (film, 1969) and The Unbearable Lightness of (as The Unbearable Lightness of Being, film, 1988).

Milan Kundera books in order

Franco-Czechoslovak poet and novelist

Lived: 1929–2023
Country: statelessness
Books: 22

Milan Kundera published 17 novels, 1 novella, 1 short story collection, 1 non-fiction book, 1 play and 1 other book, beginning with The Joke (1967). The best-known is The Unbearable Lightness of (1984).

Updated September 2026

Where to start with Milan Kundera

Start here
The Unbearable Lightness of
Milan Kundera's most-read book, rated by 92 Open Library readers.
Shortest way in
The Festival of Insignificance
One of the most-read, at about 134 pages.

Standalone novels in order

The Joke (1967)
319 pages★ 4.2 (6 ratings)Adapted for film
Buy
The Farewell Waltz (1972)
241 pages★ 3.9 (9 ratings)
Buy
Life Is Elsewhere (1973)
340 pages★ 3.8 (5 ratings)
Buy
The Book of Laughter and Forgetting (1979)
308 pages★ 3.7 (18 ratings)
Buy
The Unbearable Lightness of (1984)
320 pages★ 4.1 (92 ratings)Adapted for film
Buy
The Art of the Novel (1986)
165 pages
Buy
Immortality (1990)
400 pages★ 4.2 (13 ratings)
Buy
Immortality 1ST Edition American (1991)
354 pages
Buy
Testaments Betrayed: Essay in Nine Parts, an (1993)
284 pages
Buy
Slowness (1994)
156 pages★ 4.0 (8 ratings)
Buy
Masterpieces of Fiction (1997)
Buy
Identity (1998)
169 pages★ 3.7 (6 ratings)
Buy
Nesnesitelná Lehkost Bytí = the Unbearable Lightness of (1998)
399 pages
Buy
Ignorance (2000)
197 pages★ 3.5 (8 ratings)
Buy
The Curtain (2005)
176 pages
Buy
Broma La (2014)
328 pages
Buy
La Insoportable Levedad Del Ser (2017)
334 pages
Buy

Novellas in order

The Festival of Insignificance (2013)
134 pages★ 3.8 (5 ratings)
Buy

Short story collections in order

Laughable Loves (1970)
242 pages★ 3.8 (6 ratings)
Buy

Non-fiction in order

Encounter (2009)
203 pages
Buy

Plays in order

Jacques and His Master (1985)
98 pages
Buy

Other books in order

Kidnapped West (2025)
96 pages
Buy

Film and TV adaptations

The Joke (1969)Film · from The Joke
The Unbearable Lightness of Being (1988)Film · from The Unbearable Lightness of

About Milan Kundera

Milan Kundera was a Czech and French novelist. Kundera went into exile in France in 1975, acquiring citizenship in 1981. His Czechoslovak citizenship was revoked in 1979, but he was granted Czech citizenship in 2019.

Biography from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.

Milan Kundera FAQ

How many books has Milan Kundera written?: Milan Kundera published 17 novels, 1 novella, 1 short story collection, 1 non-fiction book, 1 play and 1 other book that we list, as of September 2026.
What order should I read Milan Kundera's books in?: Publication order is a safe choice; the full list is above. Most readers start with The Unbearable Lightness of.
What is Milan Kundera's last book?: La Insoportable Levedad Del Ser (2017).
What is Milan Kundera's most famous book?: The Unbearable Lightness of (1984) is Milan Kundera's most widely read book.
Which Milan Kundera books have been adapted?: 2 books have been adapted for film or TV, including The Joke (film, 1969) and The Unbearable Lightness of (as The Unbearable Lightness of Being, film, 1988).

Sources: book lists and dates from Wikidata and Open Library, ratings from Open Library readers. Last updated September 2026.