- He and his family came to the United States in 1970 after the Soviets invaded Czech. He became a visiting writer at the University of Iowa Writers' Workshop. In 1973, he became a professor at American University in Washington D.C.
- He returned to Prague after retired from American University in 2004. He had a close friendship with Vaclav Havel.
- His book, "A Prayer for Katerina Horovitzova, was awarded the literary prize by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2004. He was awarded the Franz Kafka Prize in 2008 by the Franz Kafka Society and the city of Prague, Czech.
- He is survived by his son, Josef, and daughter, Eva.
- His mother and sister survived the Holocaust but the rest of his family were killed along with six million others. He covered the Arab-Israeli Wai in 1948 in Israel while he met and married his wife, Vera Weislitzova, who wrote the poetry collection, "Daughter of Olga and Leo," about her family's fate during the Holocaust.
- (1996-) A teacher at American University in Washington D.C.
- Professor of Literature at the American University, Washington, DC
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