Swimming in the Dark: A Poetic Literary Debut about First Love and Political Divides

A beautiful love letter of a first love, a love feared, but inexplicable and undeniable. The writing is deep, relatable and full of love. It’s a wonderful first novel and a story necessary in the lgbt line up.

Clearly, you can write a book about what I didn't remember (or paid attention to) regarding Poland in the early '80s.I liked 'Swimming in the Dark'. I didn't love it. It moved along a good clip, as I finished it in one sitting. I liked the characters but I never felt completely attached to them either. I think part of this was, Ludwik and Janus didn't seem fully attached to each other.I felt how they connected was beautiful, yet how to maintain that was tricky - for them and for the reader. Navigating a relationship in a communist government could be construed as a metaphor for the barriers to any relationship, let alone your first one.Characters develop, so that is fine. Few are stagnant, but most of them have no clear conclusion. While, that is indeed life, it can make for a frustrating read.I wasn't sure why Ludwik even wrote to Janus in the first place, or why the inclusion of short tale of Ludwik's childhood friend even was included, other than to talk about Jews in communist Europe. There is no connection later to this, but, I might be quibbling.The book is well constructed and easy to read. It held my attention, and in today's fiction, sometimes that is the best thing that can be said.

As the teacher of a course that deals, in part, with the rhythm and movement of prose, I was already intrigued in the first couple of pages of this small novel by just how inviting and engaging its prose was. By its third page, I'd stopped reading to investigate who might have done such a splendid job of translating the young Polish author's original into English.Well, NOBODY did! He did it himself, right from the get-go; he wrote it in English - which just happens to be his own FIFTH language!! (Now, how does that work exactly? How can it even be the case?) The English prose is not competent, not adequate, not merely good - it's beautiful: there's not a poor or dull sentence in it anywhere - and I've read it twice.The story itself is a gut-punch, and a hard one at that. The novel has 4-5 pages of blissful happiness when two young, very poor gay guys find themselves in each other and go camping. The rest of the book is about their trying to find ways just to survive and be themselves in those last wretched years of the Soviet control of Poland. Because the story itself is so convincing and the language's rhythm and flow so engaging, there's no partial investment in this story; if you're there with them at all, you're there 100% - which makes the experience of reading it better and the realities it depicts worse. READER: be advised!I consider the book something of a minor miracle. I don't know that it's "perfect" (whatever that might mean, exactly), but it's so good that what I feel most towards it (and its author) is gratitude. Of the many good things art can do for us, reminding us that there's still more possible than we'd imagined is, for me, the best one. The author said in an interview that he'd taught himself English because, while he didn't "need" it at the time, he wanted to have it as his 'special' language, one he could escape to - and in.All I can say to that is how very glad I am that he's not keeping it for himself anymore!

I recently read "Swimming in the Dark: A Novel" and was completely moved by this beautiful story. The author, Tomasz Jedrowski, transports the reader to 1980s Poland, where we follow the life of Ludwik, a young man who falls in love with his classmate Janusz. Despite the societal pressures and political turmoil of the time, their love persists, and the novel explores the complexities of their relationship.Jedrowski's writing is so vivid and descriptive, I felt like I was right there with Ludwik as he navigated the challenges of being gay in a repressive society. The characters were so well-developed and their struggles were relatable and heart-wrenching. I found myself rooting for Ludwik and Janusz every step of the way.Overall, "Swimming in the Dark" is a powerful and moving novel that will stay with me for a long time. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a thought-provoking and emotionally resonant read.

This is a beautifully written story that serves as a stark reminder of how repressive social and political mores have found it convenient to destroy human happiness when people perceived as outliers are involved. In this case, the story revolves around two young gay men in Poland before the Solidarity uprising. Any deviation from the shakey orthodoxy of the moment was suspect and not to be tolerated. In fact, personal growth/happiness/professional progress is all dependent on finding sponsors in authority who can provide protection and openings to privilege. Merit and talent are not especially important and deviation from norms is toxic and instantly punished.The two principal characters of the novel struggle to keep a budding relationship alive while knowing that the odds against them are overwhelming. One of them will eventually succumb to the pressure and the other will choose exile when the hypocrisy and unfairness of times become intolerable.The language of the short novel is rich and evocative. The characters and their individual situations are easy for the reader to relate to. A sad but beautiful story.Ironically, I read this book during a week when the presidential administration elect in the U.S. announced the appointment of an openly gay man to a cabinet position. In that announcement, much was made by the President-elect about the nominees partner/spouse and the warmth and supportiveness of the relationship between the two. A stark contrast to the time and dilemma of the men in "Swimming in the Dark."

que livro meus amigos, tanto pelo contexto historico, pela narrativa e o enredo, como o livro é leve e te faz mergulhar nele muito profundamente

Muy buen libro e historia. Lo terminé en dos sentadas, no lo poda dejar !

Being gay in the 80's was always going to be hard, no matter where you were. And coming of age at that time was even harder as one came to terms with the hatred, stigma and fear that went along with it. The author reveals such a struggle in finely crafted detail, and the harshness of that struggle in the bitter world of Eastern Europe was a revelation that thoroughly captured the imagination, albeit uncomfortably. The reader is placed at the heart of a cold, dark place where anger and fury at how the world works so determinedly to crush ordinary people's hopes, dreams and simple pleasures was an all too natural reaction, put so clearly on display in this splendid book.

Köpte boken mest för att jag var intresserad av gaylivet i Polen de senaste decennierna. Blev positivt överraskad av att hur författaren hade valt att kombinera beskrivningen av gaylivet med huvudpersonens inre process och beslut. Boken är lättläst och man njuter verkligen av att följa berättelsen. Väldigt bra skrivet med bra tempo och fint avslut. Kan varmt rekommendera den, i synnerhet om man är intresserad av HBTQ-litteratur.

One of the books I read the fastest. Jedrowski writes with such detailed descriptions that I felt easily immersed on the history and curious to know what’s happening next. It was a short one but well done! I hope to read more of his work in the future.