Novel
Minuet for Guitar
Menuet za kitaro
Vitomil Zupan · 1975
Synopsis
During the war, Jakob Bergant, known as Berk, a restive spirit swept along by events he barely controls, fights in the ranks of the partisans against the occupier. Thirty years later, in a seaside resort in Spain, the war still haunts him. There he meets Joseph Bitter, a former German soldier, and the two men talk about Berk's memories and the place his former enemy holds in them. The narrative moves constantly from one period to another, laden with ironic digressions.
Context
The novel appeared in 1975 at DZS, under the full title Menuet za kitaro (na petindvajset strelov), and draws in part on its author's years with the partisans. It has been compared to Journey to the End of the Night for the narrator's voice and his philosophical digressions. It deals with the horrors of war, the moral choices it imposes and the difficulty of giving meaning to memory. Živojin Pavlović adapted it in 1980 under the title Nasvidenje v naslednji vojni.
Who it is for
A long novel, ironic and digressive, which requires a little patience; it is read in English, not in French.
Prizes and reception
Regarded as a modern classic of Slovenian literature; translated into English by Harry Leeming in 2011.