{"product_id":"havel-h-b-z21","title":"Michael Zantovsky: Havel [2014] hardback","description":"\u003cp\u003eVaclav Havel: iconoclast and philosopher-king, an internationally successful playwright who became a political dissident and then, reluctantly, a president. His pivotal role in the Velvet Revolution, the end of Communism and the birth of a modern, west-facing Czech Republic makes him a key figure of the twentieth century. He was a character of great contradictions, a courageous visionary who put his life at risk, a leader who inspired great loyalty; yet a man wracked with doubt, self-criticism, depression and despair. Above all he was an intellectual and artist, always true to himself, someone who never lost a profound sense of the absurd. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMichael Zantovsky was one of Havel's closest friends. They met as dissidents under Communism, and when a frail Havel was released from prison in May 1989 just months before the Velvet Revolution it was Zantovsky who carried his bag for him; during Havel's first presidency Zantovsky was his press secretary, speech writer and translator, and their friendship endured until Havel's death in 2011. He is therefore uniquely placed as Havel's biographer; a rare witness to this most extraordinary life.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Zantovsky, Michael","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44390676431138,"sku":"9780857898494","price":9.99,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0616\/4001\/6057\/products\/zantovsky-michael-havel-h-b-z21-9780857898494-40474062749986.jpg?v=1675278890","url":"https:\/\/chaptersbookstore.com\/products\/havel-h-b-z21","provider":"Chapters Bookstore","version":"1.0","type":"link"}