My Father Was a Gardener, Now He's a Garden... | The Deepest Analysis on Death and Mourning
"Has your father ever died?"
This month, our OldNew Book Club focuses on Georgi Gospodinov's powerful work, "The Gardener and Death." We discuss the profound helplessness a child experiences after losing their father, their efforts to tame grief, and the immortality of the garden. Is death a black hole, or a passage illuminated by stories?
Some topics discussed in the video:
Staying a "child" in a fatherless world.
The selfish aspect of grief and the healing process.
Mythological references: Father-son bonds from the Odyssey to Homer.
"The Grief Patrol" and the physical description of pain.
📌 Timestamps (Wandering):
00:00 Introduction: Georgi Gospodinov and Autobiographical Fiction
04:15 The Psychology of Grief: "Pain Pornography" or Sincerity?
08:30 Gardening: Botany as a Stance Against Death
12:45 "The Torch of Pain": Do Words Soothe Pain?
25:30 The Silent Love of Fathers: Similarities Between Bulgarian and Turkish Fathers
45:15 Yellow Laughter: Celebrating Life After Death
1:15:00 Conclusion: Death is Part of Life, There's Nothing to Fear.
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SUMMARY:
“My father was a gardener. Now he is a garden.”
In this book, Georgi Gospodinov recounts the death of his father, who had dedicated many years of his life to his garden and whom he idealized as "an Atlas carrying tons of past on his shoulders." He conveys his feelings about an irreplaceable loss with heartfelt and powerful language, while simultaneously delving into deep reflection on life and death, love and mourning, and the things that give meaning to our existence and allow us to continue on our path.
“His presence up until now validated my own existence, the existence of my childhood. On the other hand, his absence activates the entire mechanism of memory. Things that haven't crossed my mind for a long time now awaken, I awaken them – to be sure that all this really happened. Voluntary and involuntary memory work together and set the rusty gears of memories in motion, clearing or fabricating places that were not clearly visible. We must admit that this is as much a memory exercise for the deceased as it is for ourselves, egocentric, in a sense an effort to save ourselves, to make sense of our survival after someone's departure. — Can it be said that we still exist when the last person who remembers us as children is gone?” Metis Publications.
(Note: The title "His presence up until now validated my own existence, the existence of my childhood." It has been omitted from the translation as it is not part of the main text.) The publication details of the book read in the discussion:
Publisher: Metis Publications
First Edition: In Bulgarian (2024) In Turkish (2025)
Translation: Hasine Şen Karadeniz
Editor: Özde Duygu Gürkan
Cover Image: Lyuba Haleva
Number of Pages: 208
Meeting Date: 12.03.2026
OldNewBookClub No: 003
Moderator: Murat Kurt
Presentation: Nurdan Talay
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