A Brief Guide to Leaving
E-book, Czech
A Brief Guide to Leaving
A story about death that will make you think about life
Thirty-six-year-old Klára lives in Prague, leading a lonely life without friends, a long-term partner, or family. Her mother has passed away, and she hasn't seen her father for years. She works for a non-profit organisation that helps senior citizens and shares a flat with a woman she knows almost nothing about. The monotonous course of her days is interrupted by the news that her father is seriously ill, has opted for an assisted end to his life, and would like to say goodbye to Klára. This sets off a series of unexpected events that force Klára to reconsider her long-held beliefs and her outlook on life.
Bianca Bellová's new novel once again tackles hard-hitting themes — death, the end of life, and euthanasia. How far does the human desire for absolute control over one's own life extend? What distinguishes us as a species from other animals? Do we have the right to decide the time of our departure? As is typical for Bellová, her book does not offer simple answers to these burning questions — readers, along with the main character, must find them for themselves. And on this journey, they may learn a lot about themselves.
What the critics are saying:
Bellová needs only a few strokes to instantly transform an everyday situation into a setting for a thriller, a tragicomic reminiscence, or simply a turning point after which life can never be the same again.
- Jonáš Zbořil on the book Dvaadvacet fragmentů (Twenty-two Fragments), Seznam Zprávy
The acclaimed author once again confirms her exceptional storytelling talent and ability to construct a profound story within a compact space. She writes about us — about our fundamental life decisions, about the loneliness that weighs us down and simultaneously awakens in us a longing for companionship.
- Pavlína Prokůpková, Editor
Bianca Bellová
(1970) was born in Prague. Her debut, Sentimentální román (A Sentimental Novel), was published in 2009 (reissued in 2018). This was followed by the books Mrtvý muž (Dead Man) (2011) and Celý den se nic nestane (Nothing Happens All Day) (2013). For her novel Jezero (The Lake) (2016), she won the Magnesia Litera award in the Book of the Year category, the European Union Prize for Literature, and the EBRD Literature Prize; the rights for its publication have been sold in twenty-five countries. In 2019, she published the novel Mona, for which she received the Czech Book Award. In 2021, she released the short story collection Tyhle fragmenty (These Fragments), and a year later, the novel Ostrov (The Island). In the short story collection Transfer (2023), she skilfully wove together ordinary yet remarkable human stories. Her most recent novel, Neviditelný muž (The Invisible Man) (2024), featuring strong female protagonists, explores the theme of old grievances and forgiveness. She published her latest short stories in the brilliant and linguistically polished book Dvaadvacet fragmentů (Twenty-two Fragments) (2025), which recounts pivotal life moments.
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