A Gentleman in Moscow

 

A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles

A Gentleman in Moscow is one of those books that if, instead of actually reading it, you had someone who HAD read it tell you the entire story, you wouldn’t really be that impressed.  The thing that makes this novel so outstanding is not necessarily the story, but how the author TELLS the story.  You can make the accusation that this book only focuses on one character, in one place, over 40+ years, and that not a lot of substantial exciting events happen.  Yes, this is true, but to hear author Amor Towles tell this tale, it’s incredibly enrapturing.  Essentially, the author knows how to tell an extraordinarily captivating story when not a lot of captivating events happen within the circle of our narrative.

The story begins in Moscow, Russia after the Russian civil war in 1922 that elevated the Bolshevik regime into power after the lackluster tsar was dethroned, exiled, and eventually executed.  Our main character is Count Alexander Rostov – a distant family member of the murdered tsar. Because he is a “threat” to the new Russia, yet somewhat well known, he is spared the firing squad by the Bolsheviks and relegated to living the rest of his life under house arrest at Moscow’s well renowned Metropol Hotel.  The Metropol is the finest of the finest in Moscow. In fact, Rostov has actually been a resident for the last four years.  Unfortunately, now that his status has radically changed, he immediately finds himself transferred from his luxurious suite to a much smaller, squalid space not much larger than a walk-in closet.

How exactly does a “gentleman” handle such a radical shift in his lifestyle and surroundings?  Does he pout? Scream? Write angry letters? Allow his blood pressure to skyrocket due to such injustice?   Well, that would be “no” to all of the above.  Count Alexander Rostov is above all of that.  What’s fascinating about this character is how he handles this disposition that will literally affect him for the rest of his life.  He still has money, so he can imbibe in many of what the hotel has to offer – the bars, the ballrooms, the barber (once per week for a trim), and the food.  Ah, the food.  Alexander is an extreme connoisseur of foodstuffs and the spirits that accompany a fine meal, so we read an awful lot about the meals that are consumed throughout the decades by himself and his companions.

There are friends and acquaintances that pop in our story.  Some don’t stay long, some do. The main majesty of our tale is how our gentleman responds to everything and everybody around him.  We’re never really allowed too deep into Alexander’s soul.  It seems that the “gentlemanly” thing to do is to keep such sentiments buried, so we see what is only on the surface.  For those who know the history of the U.S.S.R. from the 1920s onward know that the history isn’t pleasant, and although we hear splatters of turmoil and travails that exist outside the walls of the Metropol Hotel, most of the suffering is kept distant.  Still, we can see the living conditions of Alexander and those around him slightly deteriorate as time moves forward.

In fact, this is one of the minor criticisms of this story.  There are some who think it’s a bit unfair to read about the “suffering” of an individual who, even though confined to house arrest, is still probably living better than 99% of his countrymen. If someone is unfamiliar with the history of Russia, it might be especially hard to connect the dots between what is going on outside and how it affects those on the insulated inside; especially when those on the inside are implausibly privileged.  Although very rare, we do hear terms such as “gulag”, “collectivization”, and “the Cheka”.  Most of these horrendous events are left outside the story at a distance, and the astute reader must make connections on their own.  A great example is sometime in 1930s when Alexander and some of his “friends” who are all lovers of the finest foods, must scrimp, save, and search over a period of years just to obtain the right ingredients to concoct an exquisite dish of bouillabaisse for them to savor and enjoy.  This event takes up several pages of the story, yet like everything else in this book, is still interesting to the reader.

Although most of the events in this story aren’t that exciting, the entire story still manages to enchant the reader’s attention.  This is one of those rare gems of a novel that figurately sucks you right into the story and you feel as though you’re roaming the cavernous behemoth of a hotel at the main character’s side.   In spite of the rich language and wonderfully literate descriptions of the people and events, I never once got lost. I was never confused, and never had to retrace my steps back a few pages to figure out what was going on.  I felt I was part of the story. And I loved every minute of it.

So a story that was definitely somewhat different than what most passes for mainstream fiction these days.  If you’re a reader who craves adventure, mystery, romance, and action, this book might not be your cup of tea.  If, however, you enjoy deep literate musings of introspective characters and their somewhat dire circumstances and how they brilliantly cope, then this might be something that will pleasantly surprise you.  A refreshing story and I hope to uncover other works of a similar vein sometime in the foreseeable future.