It's a big challenge for a modern author to write a historical gay love story that don't end in tragedy. Given the many past and current instances of homosexuals being persecuted in almost every culture around the world there are few opportunities to plausibly invent examples of such relationships which aren't entirely secretive or don't end in betrayal/exposure/death. It can be so discouraging as a reader because, while I don't want to diminish the painful reality and struggle of homosexuals throughout the ages, I also want to believe there are stories from history where same sex couples could enjoy the same opportunities for both swoon-worthy passion and heartbreak that heterosexual couples possess. I think a couple of novels such as Sebastian Barry's “Days Without End” and Patrick Gale's “A Place Called Winter” manage to faithfully represent the past while also offering an uplifting message of hope.
Tomasz Jedrowski takes an interesting approach in his debut novel “Swimming in the Dark” which depicts two young men over the course of the summer of 1980 in Soviet-governed Poland. Prior to starting university they meet at an agricultural camp while serving their compulsory labour requirement for the country and embark on a passionate affair while reading James Baldwin's “Giovanni's Room”. It's described in highly romantic terms where the pair are able to form a world of their own: “we lay facing each other, the tip of your nose on the bridge of mine. Nothing else mattered in the dark.” They discover their own paradise in a beautiful, remote rural location. But, at the same time, the threat of Party politics and the punishment dealt for homosexual acts creates an atmosphere of suspense. Their story could go either way.
The novel is told in the second person where Ludwik speaks directly to his lover Janusz recounting their past experiences. This adds to the heightened sense of romance as these are memories which have clearly been retreaded in the narrator's mind until they have a smooth, hard polish. But, while the eroticism feels amplified, so does his resentment for the disagreements which divided them. Both men realise the perilousness of their positions within the Communist regime which actively punished same sex acts, but they have differing ideologies on how to survive this environment. While Janusz is intent on working within the system to ensure his individual survival, Ludwik becomes increasingly outspoken on condemning a system which leads to the suffering of many different people who don't enjoy the protection of privilege. It leads him to take risky actions and valiantly declare: “No matter what happens in the world, however brutal or dystopian a thing, not all is lost if there are people out there risking themselves to document it. Little sparks cause fires too.”
This a very readable story which does a good job at dramatising a gay romance while depicting a specific historical time period. It also has some memorable, complex female characters that feel like much more than window dressing (as women in gave love stories can often be treated.) However, I found some of the shifts in time to be slightly awkward making it confusing to locate where exactly the characters were in the narrative. It also felt like the novel didn't delve deep enough into either the complexity of certain political issues or the emotional ramifications they'd have for certain characters. Nevertheless, I think this is a very enjoyable book which meaningfully explores a part of gay history I haven't seen depicted in fiction before.
