“Coin & Labyrinth” by Mantos Adomėnas: what do spies (and politicians) dream about? | Culture

When a representative of the political profession writes the history of the pages of power (in the zone of three zeros), popular wisdom would whisper to run as far away from it as possible. Because… what should politicians write about, if not about themselves – something microphonic and without wasting paper? But “in life, as in good art, people never cease to amaze, breaking the stereotypes into which we conveniently pack them”, reminds the hero of the novel, Tom. Perhaps the author’s own message to the readers is encoded in these words?

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Coin & Maze,

Mantas Adomėnas

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The reasons why I do not regret having overcome both the first and the second part of M. Adomėnos’ story are different from those mentioned by most readers. I’m not a fan of detective or spy novels. And researching Russia as a metaphysical evil with the “devil’s finger” pointing at Lithuania doesn’t sound like the most fun and relaxing pastime either. However, the labyrinth constructed by Mantos “not from stones, but from words” did not disappoint. Because here you can find hints that are personally more intriguing than the deep geopolitics of the book, as well as the tense scenes of the nature of “Inception”, which are also not lacking in both parts of the novel.

I first heard about the author of “Moneta & Labyrinth” during my political science studies. At the university, there were rumors among the students about a young polyglot who had recently returned from Cambridge and possibly the smartest person in Lithuania, whose only joke was the dialectic of Heraclitus translated from ancient Greek. Even then, it seemed a little strange why a person from the philosophical and linguistic world decided to dive into the world of practical politics – a completely different mode of operation – with all the consequences that follow.

Photo by Vytautas Juozaitis/Mantas Adomėnas

Is the field of politics, by its very nature an overshadowing field of power struggle, capable of responding to more subtle needs of self-realization? After becoming a politician, how to play the “big game” mentioned in the novel, if professional everyday life inevitably leads you to those “small” ones? Finally, how to use and where in the political sky of Lithuania to put all the Latin epigraphs and Borgesian librarians of Babel that are crowded in Mantos’ head, if the nation prefers to ask for the concepts of “Dawn of Nemunas”? “Coin & Labyrinth” describes Tom’s life path – from adolescence to medieval quests – allows us to draw parallels and incorrectly guess what answers are in the mind of the author of the novel.

Tom is a unique character. Having joined the activities of the secret services formed by the Independent Lithuania for patriotic (and not only) reasons, he never gives up his impractical inclinations – metaphysical curiosity, paranoia of symbolism and determination to get to those “secret doors to […] deeper meaning”. It is not surprising that in the book it is education that becomes Tom’s main weapon in the confrontation with the great evil. Yes, the agent isn’t bad at throwing knives and spewing other James Bond-style killing (and seducing women!) methods, but he also pulls out his favorite trump cards at critical moments, such as reasoning about “hypertext syntax.”

It would be interesting to hear what Lithuanian intelligence officers think about such access. For at least some readers, Tom’s extended musings on “truth” and “what lies beyond” must have blown the fuses quite a bit. On the other hand, literature is exactly the space where the magic-stuck and sometimes painful reality can be tried to rise up – towards what the writer’s soul longs for, and not the other way around. What came out of it? A Lithuanian novel that is rich in the manner of Umberto Eco, leaving the reader with hope that the world is more complicated than we might think, and that there is still room for mystery and adventure in it.

“And in the past, Thomas was plagued by ennui, tormented by doubts as to whether he was properly using his intellectual talents while working for intelligence, where nothing tangible could be discovered, where the constantly renewed routine cycles destroy any illusion of the expediency of their struggle.” In this quote, it remains to replace the word “intelligence” with the word “in politics “, and at least one of the possible reasons why the famous politician decided not to limit himself to being a politician, but started writing a novel, will emerge. A novel whose main character, like the author himself, reveals himself as a person of exceptional erudition (often helpful, sometimes not), and at the same time – as still a person who can be confused, doubt, love, and sometimes – feel lonely; who has far-reaching ambitions and who – in a very human way – dreams of a happy ending. All that remains is to congratulate Mantas Adomēnas for his resounding and very successful entry into the world of literature: here – unlike in politics – it is easier to believe in happy endings.