The Trenchcoat

Hello everyone, welcome back to the blog. This week’s book is the The Trenchcoat by Norman Manea. The story takes place in communist Romania close to the government’s collapse in a 1989. It revolves around two couples going to a dinner party hosted by old acquaintances, and the aftermath of this visit. While nothing really happens in the book, I still enjoyed it and thought it painted a interesting picture of everyday life in a deteriorating totalitarian regime.

The book starts off with two couples driving to a dinner party hosted by old acquaintances Diana and Bazil Beldaneus. Visiting are Ali and Ioana Stoian with a woman named Felicia and a man who goes unnamed for the entire story, only referred to as “The Kid” or the “The Learned One”. This naming was initially a bit confusing as I thought there was an actual kid involved in the story but I soon realized it was just a nickname. It did have me curious as to whether the words being translated as kid and child had a slightly more nuanced meaning in the original language. In the car ride, it is revealed that Bazil is an official with somewhat of a reputation for leveraging his position to obtain more than his share of gas, and likely other goods as well.

The dinner party takes place and everything is as expected – the hosts are afiable, the food is plentiful and lavish, and the drinks keep coming. Everyone should be having a splendid time, but they are not. I’m not entirely sure what the problem is but I think the guests feel somewhat uncomfortable indulging in such excess while everyone around them is living in scarcity. Ironically, the conversation during the dinner turns to the lineups for bread that regular people have to go through, while they eat food prepared by a private chef.

After the party, both couples are putting off calling the Beldaneus’s to thank them for hosting. Calling would mean continuing their relationship to some extent, which neither of them seem eager to do. Eventually they get around to it out of courtesy, and during the calls Diana mentions a rain jacket that was left behind. No one can account for it being there, and it becomes the subject of great mystery as well as distress for Diana. I wasn’t entirely sure what the significance of the trenchcoat was, but it seems like it was used to exemplify the paranoia and uneasiness that comes with living under such heavy surveillance.

Discussion question: What did you think was the significance of the Trenchcoat?