A 35 year old man happens across a former lover, a 50 year old woman, and the two reminisce about their affair from 15 years ago and how things were then, how things are now, time, age, and all sorts of pseudo-heady things - but where will the evening take them…?
The title - Let the Old Dead Make Room for the Young Dead - grabbed me; it’s a good ‘un. And it’s been a minute since I read The Unbearable Lightness of Being - I think I sorta enjoyed it? - and saw this was part of the Faber Stories range, which I’ve found some gems in, and decided to revisit Milan Kundera. It’s not that great a story though…
I totally appreciate Kundera’s skill. I see the layers here - how the title is both explained in the story proper (the woman’s dead husband’s grave plot has been given up because she didn’t renew the lease so the old dead has been replaced by the young dead), but also a reference to the man and woman’s old relationship and their current one.
The writing is sharp and clear and the man’s characterisation and feelings about being 35 - no longer a young man, his dashed hopes for his youth that will never be realised - is really convincing and heartfelt. The woman’s characterisation is fine but she didn’t seem as fully formed as the man.
But - and this is something I often find with Literary writers - as much as I can admire the artistry behind a piece of writing, it’s frequently the case that that doesn’t correlate to interest. Because I was pretty bored with the story for the most part! Yeah, it’s clever, but dull - I mean, that’s all it is: a couple of miserable people moaning at each other while the horny levels rise? Bleh…
I liked the upbeat ending even if the sentiment seemed kinda obvious and unremarkable - let go of the past, live for today. Let the Old Dead… isn’t terrible though it also wasn’t for me - Milan Kundera’s a talented writer but not one I would ever call entertaining.
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