30 Books in 30 Beach Days Day 22: "A Gentleman in Moscow"
"Delightful" isn't often a word you'd think of to describe a post-revolutionary Russian novel. But Amor Towles' year-old novel A Gentleman in Moscow is just that -- delightful. This is the story of "Former Person" Count Alexander Rostov, who in 1922 (at age 22) is sentenced to perpetual house arrest at the luxurious Metropol Hotel in Moscow. His crime is his heritage -- and his gentlemanly upbringing and aristocratic tendencies are not things his sentence forces him to abandon; even as he moves to tiny attic chambers and, eventually, becomes the head waiter in the hotel's famous fine restaurant, Alexander remains ever the gentleman.
I've always loved Russian literature (fun fact: the first class I signed up for in college was called From Russia with Love and exposed me to Chekhov, Gogol, Pushkin, Tolstoy, Dostoevesky, and more), and this is no exception; however, A Gentleman in Moscow doesn't feel like a quintessentially Russian story. So much of Russian literature is defined by the country's brutal landscape, climate, and politics -- and Alexander is literally sheltered from most of those aspects for the entirety of the novel. Moreover, as an aristocrat, Alexander is truly a global citizen; he speaks several languages, is a connoisseur of food and wine from all around the world, and appreciates the finer things that Metropol guests from various representative countries share. The reader, like Alexander, gains access to snapshots of Russia and its post-revolutionary political climate via memories and hearsay, from guests and visitors who share their stories and shape Alexander's own. Without them, the Metropol could be anywhere in the world -- and that forces the reader to focus squarely on the cast of characters and, of course, its lead: Alexander.
These characters, of course, are the fabric of the novel. The restaurant's chef and it's maitre'd, its seamstress, its guests of honor, its youngest patron -- this motley crew forms a family that supports and sustains the orphaned, solitary Alexander for decades. This is a story of a man who is able to retain his elegance, his optimism, his wit, and his friends even in the face of perpetual punishment. It is a story of how he retains all that is good about his past while growing and thriving in the face of the inconveniences and tribulations that would bring down a lesser man. Throughout the novel, the Count only grows in charisma, charm, and empathy. What's not to love about that?
Rating: 5/5
