An interesting and very well-written debut novel.
SPACEMAN OF BOHEMIA is both a science fiction novel and also a reflection on home. It's a strange novel, to be sure (the giant, possibly hallucinated spider should have been a give away), but the growing distance between our protagonist and his distant wife on Earth is just as important to the story. It's also a very good read, with hints of humour, an interesting protagonist, and very well-composed prose.

I'm looking forward to reading Kalfar's next novel.

Ok so Kindles aren't the most photogenic, but put this on your TBR list! I found this novel surprisingly delightful and strange.

Ostensibly about a lone astronaut on a mission to collect space dust from a mysterious purple cloud looming over modern day Earth, the story soon turns to a meditation on what reality and loyalty really mean. Also, Nutella: not just for humans. (Spaceman of Bohemia by Jaroslav Kalfar 🚀)

I feel like a lot of the fiction I've read this year as a sense of the weird to it. Something is off, something is not quite right. Spaceman of Bohemia is about an orphaned boy raised by his grandparents who grows up to become an astronaut. When the novel begins, he is going on a single-manned mission to a weird particle glow cloud in space near Venus. But this isn't science fiction in the usual sense. I found this novel to be an exploration on what it means to be a person, what it means to recognize your past as part of your future, and a philosophical meditation on identity.

I didn't know what to expect when I started reading it, and I'm glad I never read more than the cover flap on the copy that's been on the shelves at work for a while because I think I might have been disappointed if I thought this was a space adventure story. It reminded me a lot of Foer's Everything is Illuminated in the way in which the story moved back and forth through time, through flashes of Jakub's memories and his present experiences.

What I loved most about this novel, surprisingly enough because I am terrified of spiders, is the hallucinatory spider-like alien who loves Nutella. We never really find out whether or not the spider-alien Jakub sees is really there, and it makes me wonder if the alien manifests itself based on the fears of the person it senses. The alien tells Jakub that it has been observing Earth for a while, absorbing everything humanity has to offer, but it's Jakub who brings that "humanry" to the alien on a personal level. The end is both heartbreaking and triumphant, and it left me wanting to read more about Jakub and more by Jaroslav Kalfar.

A copy of this book was provided to me for review by the publisher and Netgalley; all opinions are my own.

Spaceman of Bohemia, the debut novel by Czech writer Jaroslav Kalfar, is a magical narrative about solitude and longing, in which the unexpected and unexplained are beautifully intertwined. Yes, it is about space, but it is also about politics, love, dreams, and the imagination. Kalfar’s tale of a man alone–yet not alone–in space is wise, humorous, and intellectually playful. Kalfar’s memorable debut belongs on the shelf with the best of Czech literature.

www.sfgate.com/books/.../Spaceman-of-Bohemia-by-Jaroslav-Kalfa-11037526.php

I had a hard time getting into this book. Since I did not finish it, I do not intend to publish a review.

In 'Spaceman of Bohemia,' we follow a man who has taken up the opportunity to become the first Czech in space but as he spends more time away from home, his relationships start to radically change on Earth. This reminded me quite a bit of 'The Book of Strange New Things' (Faber), but that's not necessarily a bad thing because I actually enjoyed 'Spaceman of Bohemia' more.

This book has some bizarre moments of science fiction that I didn’t particularly enjoy. Where I think the novel’s strength lays is more in it's moments of perception and quietness. There’s a fair bit of political background that drives our main character to believe what he believes and do what he does that adds a unique layer of freshness to such a narrative. Because of his father’s associations with Communism, our main character struggles to make up for this ‘stain’ on his family ledger and via this we get to see a bit more of a society we don’t usually read these days.

This was an enjoyable read in the end. In places it did feel a bit jarring but overall I considered it well worth my time. I thought the book also had some very beautiful passages that I loved rereading. I'd be very curious about what the author comes out with next!

I started reading Spaceman of Bohemia by Jaroslav Kalfar expecting a story like The Martian by Andy Weir. Both are about an astronaut surviving the elements and loneliness. This is about where the similarity ends. The Martian is a book about survival; Spaceman of Bohemia is a book about a space journey, a metaphorical journey through a man's past, and a somewhat satirical, absurdist commentary through Czech history and current events. Best of all, it is a book that makes me think and leaves me thinking.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2017/03/spaceman-of-bohemia.html.

Reviewed for NetGalley

Impressive debut from Czech immigrant and now MFA grad. Stylistically spare in a wonderful way that brings out both the humor and the pathos, with nothing feeling forced. A young man assents to serve as the first astronaut from his tiny eastern European country, and the first ever to venture this close to the planet Venus...and the mysterious dust cloud that has altered earth's atmosphere and which, in all likelihood, might allow him a longer gaze in the origins of everything: of his anxiety, of his country's history, of the ontogeny of life itself, and of his marriage's sad demise. Recommend this one highly to anyone who can stand the sting of a good satire, but one with hope in its heart.

What a wonderful surprise! There is something in this inventive book for everyone.

The story weaves between Jakub as an astronaut from the Czech Republic and his quest to investigate a purple cloud of cosmic dust with the history of his father as a Communist collaborator and the repercussions on the family.

There is some beautiful writing here, and while I much preferred the first half of the book and the conversations (or not) with Hanus, it captivated my imagination and I look forward to more from Jaroslav Kalfar.

[Actual rating: 3.75]

<i>Time was not a line, but an awareness. I was no longer a body, but a series of pieces whistling as they bonded. I felt every cell within me. I could count them, name them, kill them, and resurrect them. Within the core, I was a tower made of fossil fragments. I could be disassembled and reassembled.</i>

Fundamentally, this book seems like a journey of self-reflection and what solitude means for looking inside herself. Jakub Procházka is the first Czech astronaut, and travels to the dangerous place of Venus to collect sample for his scientists colleagues. There he spends lots of time in contemplation over the cracks in his marriage with his wife Lenka who he left behind for his own dreams and ambitions. How could he be so far, both literally and figuratively, from the closeness and devotion that they used to share?

While there, he meets poisonous alien spider,Hanuš, who may or may not be real. Because of his solitude they become fast friends and bond over conversational topics. While this is going on, Jakub notices that his wife is becoming more distant, and one day she completely disappears from a phone appointment. Shocked, Jakub steels himself into depression and falls into really poor self-care routines.

After some wacko experiences that he has literally floating in the universe and ends up in Russian spaceship of all thing. He was a child of the Velvet Revolution, orphaned and raised in the countryside by his parents. Always trying to run away and escape his past, always trying to be a better man than his father was, yet something pulling him back into the orbit of the past.

<i>But one has to ask: why do the big things at such a high cost? I chose the quiet life. I like the idea of being recognized by my field and no one else. This way I have a purpose, one I believe in, but I'm not burdened by the constant idea of putting on a public image, a view of myself the masses can accept.</i>

<b>This inner struggle is characterized as the push and pull between having a public life with adoration from the crowds, or from deciding to retire to a quiet life that's under the radar</b>. It's a common thread that goes throughout the entirety of the novel.

The only thing is, in my personal taste, I've noticed that me and space novels don't mesh well together. There's a lot psychological and character study, that isn't necessary exciting to the plot but instead drags it along. <b>Existential crisis and second chance are mixed into this pie, however there's a lot of living inside Jakub's messy brain, which is what makes this journey beautifully real.</b>

**Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.**

Review published on Booklover Book Reviews website: http://bookloverbookreviews.com/2017/03/book-review-spaceman-of-bohemia-by-jaroslav-kalfar.html

akub Procházka, the first Czech in space, is sent on a solo mission to collect dust from the mysterious Chopra cloud. The long journey through the cosmos gives him plenty of time to ponder the state of his marriage. His wife Lenka is getting increasingly distant during their chats. One day, Lenka goes into hiding and doesn't show up for their weekly call. Devastated by her disappearance, he sinks into a deep depression. That's when a Nutella-loving alien spider appears. Jakub names him Hanuš, after a Czech clockmaster. Is Hanuš real or a figment of his imagination, perhaps a "personification of [his] fears"? Jakub's conversations with Hanuš help him assess his life and determine what drove him to this point. Can this expedition into the unknown help him overcome his father's sins? Will he survive the dangerous journey and return home? Even if he finds his way back to Earth, will Lenka remain permanently out of reach?

Spaceman of Bohemia is a mix of science, history, politics and philosophy. Sometimes I saw shades of Kurt Vonnegut (Hanuš) and Anthony Marra (Jakub's childhood). The story takes a messier path than I usually prefer, but it actually worked for me here. It fits with the way Hanuš interacts with Jakub's memories and mirrors the tangled web of human history. Jakub's journey shifts halfway through. I preferred the first half. There was less room for humor in the second half. I also missed some of the characters from the beginning! The writing was always gorgeous, but sometimes too ornate for me. I'd get lost in a sentence and have to start over or I'd lose sight of Jakub during the philosophical ruminations. I started to see the author's hand in the second half, but it was still a pleasure to read.

Czechoslovakia's Velvet Revolution, the bloodless overthrow of the authoritarian Communist government in 1989, marks a turning point in Jakub's life. Jakub's father was a member of the secret police; he informed on his neighbors and participated in torture. Once the Communists lose power, the man who was feared becomes a target. After his death, Jakub and his grandparents face the full brunt of the community's resentment. Jakub considers himself "the biological carrier of [his] father’s curse." Every step he takes is intended to overcome his father's mistakes. Are our parents' flaws embedded in our DNA, destining us to repeat their mistakes? One character notices that Jakub and his father share the same "terminal decision to serve." Would Jakub's father have always been attracted to brutality, or could his worst impulses be harnessed for good in the right conditions? Is Jakub proof that his father's actions were borne out of circumstance?

One of Jakub's biggest fears is being a "nobody." It's part of why he's so intent on having children. Jakub sees firsthand how the things that drive us can also destroy us. As good as Jakub tries to be, he isn't perfect. He's willing to trample over other people to survive (and I can't say I blamed him!). He imagines a man tortured for selfish means. He even has Lenka followed, despite feeling guilty about it. Jakub was completely blindsided by Lenka's disappearance. His travels caused some strain on their relationship, but he thought that their love was enough to hold them together. He was too caught up in his own goals to notice that his marriage might not be going as well as he thought. "People become abstractions. And the things weighing on you become clear. That’s why people are so afraid to be away from each other, I think. The truth begins to creep in." The physical distance between Jakub and Lenka deepens cracks in a marriage already on a shaky foundation. How could he have been so distant from the person he thought he was closest to? How could he have been so unaware of what was going on right in front of him? 

Why are we here? Is a life made most meaningful by a person's achievements or the intimate relationships they make along the way? Who has it better in life: those who live simple lives or those whose names are still uttered because of their contributions to society? Is living a quiet life enough? Jakub expresses wonderment at humanity's unstoppable march forward. When he looks at Old Town Square in Prague, he sees all of its iterations through the decades: the things that change for the good, the things that change for the worse, and the things that only change on the surface. Life is messy, but alway moving. He feels an overwhelming love of humanity and a sense of pride to be a part of it all. He sees the value in people who propel us forward without any thought to self-preservation, but also in those who keep moving forward with their day-to-day lives despite everything going around them. As driven as Jakub was to explore the unknowns of space, he realizes there are many mysteries to explore on the Earth too. In a way, we are all exploring the unknown, feeling our way through the dark.

Isolation makes Jakub see what he values and what he really wants out of his life. Will Jakub get a second chance to live for himself? He'll have to confront many uncomfortable truths first. Like with many of these stories packed with lots of big ideas, I'm not confident that I absorbed everything. It was a messy, beautiful journey, very much like life.

I received this ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

If people reading the summary are expecting a book like The Martian, they will be sorely disappointed. Jakub's time in space is only a small portion of the story. It isn't a story about a man in space as much as a story about a man.

The story switches between the past and present alternating between chapters. The past moves through his life up until it reaches the present. You find out about his childhood and how it shaped him as a person. Growing up in Czechoslovakia during the Soviet era obviously plays a large role in his life. His father was an informant and torturer for the regime and that plays into the overarching theme of the back. How much of our families' sins do we carry? How much of our life is determined by who is in our lives? This is not only a question that Jakub is constantly asking, but also his wife Lenka.

With Jakub and Lenka, there is also the question of love. How much of a salve can love be in when lack of love isn't the main problem in a relationship? How far can you push someone until it's not worth it?

Another issue that this book focused on was politics, the Soviet era vs the democratic one. Jakub's life during the Soviet occupation as a child was actually good. As an informant and collaborator, Jakub's father was able to provide a decent life for his family. However, with the Soviet collapse comes the collapse of the life that Jakub has known. Things don't go well with collaborators in the end.

And obviously the parts where Jakub is in space <spoiler>and beyond</spoiler> are filled with existentialist questions.

The main problem with the book is the overwrought writing. You can tell just how hard the author is trying at times and it takes away from the book itself.

3.5 stars rounds to 4.

Shortly into this novel, I was a bit confused. Confusion quickly led to a desire to know more about this journey. And the journey in this novel is not just about space travel. A wonderful book about dealing with one's past and determining what the future may bring. I love that this book will appeal to those readers who may not currently read science fiction - it's a story for everyone.

A cloud of cosmic dust appeared just off Venus and settled there, changing the color and tenor of the night sky. It’s a mystery and the world waits to see whether the Russians, Chinese, or the Americans will win the race of discovery. Except, this time a mouse will roar. A small country of only ten million, the bold Czech Republic sends Jakub Procházka, a cosmic dust scientist with no extra-planetary ambitions, into space in a discount shuttle they purchased from the Swiss.

Jaroslav Kalfař’s Spaceman of Bohemia is a hard book to classify. On the surface, it’s a science fiction story about an astronaut from Czechoslovakia who is sent off to explore a mysterious particle cloud near Venus, encounters an alien, and generally has a big science fiction adventure. It is also the story of the Velvet Revolution, which liberated Czechoslovakia and its repercussions for Jakub’s family. His father is about to be tried for his crimes as a member of the secret police when his parents die in a funicular accident. He goes to live with his grandparents who are cursed by an obsessed man seeking revenge for his imprisonment by Jakub’s father. Add to this family saga, a love story, a political parable, and a liberal does of satiric humor and you have a novel that balances on the fine line between brilliance and chaos.

It wobbles. I wobble, too, in trying to think about this book. There are so many portions of the book that are brilliant. It is emotionally engaging. I loved Jakub’s grandfather and there is a scene in that cosmic dust cloud where Jakub releases his ashes that made my heart ache. The scenes with the extraterrestrial are comic and poignant. And of course, extraterrestrials would love Nutella, doesn’t everyone? The story of his childhood is some of the most powerful writing in the book. On the other hand, the whole Russian cosmonaut thing is not for me. It’s hallucinatory and weird and some will love it. I didn’t, but it solves a huge wrinkle in the plot.

The novel has two parts, the trip to the dust cloud with the mechanical disaster and the alien encounter and all this excitement, a very brief intermission, and the rest of the story. The intermission is so clever, telling an alternative story of what happened to the famed heretic for whom the spaceship was named. If we did not realize when he was burned on the Day of the Witches Jakub Procháska is the Jan Hus of the 21st century, the intermission lays it out for us.

There is a lot of art in the structure of Spaceman of Bohemia, art that might be obscured by the comic feints at modern materialism and commercial culture (so much of the JanHus1 is sponsored by some company or another), but the intermission reveals the allegory and makes the rest of the story make sense. It’s a secret story from a secret archive, but it gives a happy ending to the horrors of history as well as hope for the future.

This was a very interesting read! I loved having the past of the main character, Jakub, slowly revealed as the story progressed. Jaroslav Kalfar's writing is wonderful and I grew to really like the characters in it. Nothing is simple and the characters do not fit into neat boxes. I also loved the "possibly imaginary giant alien spider" - Hanus. I'll be on the watch for future books by Jaroslav Kalfar!

Well written and fun read. Recommended for anyone remotely interested in this genre!

I would have liked to spend more time in space and less time on the wife. At times I got really excited about the direction the story was going and other times I thought "Why"? Overall I did like the story and would recommend it.