Swimming in the DarkI am practising my English, hence this. Also, the book is written in English, even though the author is a Polish man born in Germany. This is an absolutely stunning book. I thought I might cry at the end. It's gay literature, but it's not a love story and definitely not a romance novel (It's closer to Ulyana's Атраметни, then to, let's say, the Song of Achilles, shot out to Ulyana). If you read the premise, you might think this is about two dudes who cannot be together due to tragic circumstances, and it's really not. But it is about love, in a way. 1980s, New York. The narrator is a young man from Poland who recently immigrated to America. He writes down his story, addressing it to his former lover, who is still in Warsaw. He talks about lots of things: his childhood with his mother and grandmother, shame of queer puberty, his first crush, scraps from his new life in America, and, most importantly, how he tried to build a life in Warsaw with that man and why it didn’t work out. It’s concentrated on the reality of the Polish People's Republic, and this is an essential part of the conflict between these two people. It’s more about the atmosphere than the plot. No western sugarcoating or “maybe communism is not that bad” though, the author knows what he is doing. But to be fair, it’s written for Western audiences. Sometimes I felt like the book screams, “Look, how bad it was!”. I’m pretty sure he dedicates pages to meat deficit for this sole purpose, but of course, it’s not the main point. For me, it was a bit too close to home, if you understand what I mean. At the same time, life in Poland was not as hard as life in Ukraine, you know. What do you mean the main character can just leave the country. To be fair, I like this book because I enjoyed the story, not because of all that. What I liked specifically:• This book is like a beautiful building with intricate designs. Every world is precise, and every character interaction has multiple meanings. Be sure that gun will shoot. I know that it's a current publishing standard and I do not exactly like it. But I do like when it is executed so well. • The style. As they say, non-natives write better sometimes, at least more uniquely. • Narration style. It’s written in first-person POV, but the man in question is referred to as “you”. I think it’s beautiful. • Two closeted homosexuals who flirt with each other through reading censored Guovani's room together. Guovani's room, my ass. (Who doesn't know, it's a queer classic from the 50s. I sure recommend). It’s really funny. • Constant parallels to Giovanni's room. • A story that does not treat love as an answer. • He refers to The Palace of Culture and Science in Warsaw as a scar. • How кумовство is described. • How this book is weirdly funny in strange places. • Lots of polish. • Fuck soviets, obv.• Conflict between the two main characters.• It's pushing a certain narrative, but not in annouing way.What I didn't like:• The first point from the former. Sometimes it feels too artificial. But again, it's current writing and editing style. You would not like it if you want an adventure or a love story. But there is a Ukrainian translation. But for me it’s like 9/10.