Book Review — A Gentleman in Moscow
What makes reading (and watching movies and TV) enjoyable is that every now and then, when you commit enough time to a piece, it will surprise you most pleasantly. This time, it is A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles. Such a wonderful book that really surprised me. The premise of the book seemed boring at the start, or so I thought. It is a story about a Russian aristocrat who was placed under house arrest in a hotel and how he lived his life within the confines of the hotel. But it is way more than that.
Historical Period
The book is set in the immediate period following the Russian Revolution, when Russia was transitioning from the imperial Tsardom to the communist Soviet Union. For me, this was a particularly interesting period of history, and it was one of the reasons I picked up this book in the first place. It was a period where old traditions were fading (or rather, being erased). Right in the middle of it is Count Rostov, a member of the Russian aristocracy who returned to a Russia that was on a revenge arc against the upper class.
Without spoiling, Rostov was sentenced to house arrest in the fabulous Metropol Hotel, where he was “doomed” to spend the rest of his life. The way the author described the Metropol Hotel and all its grandeur and intricacies really makes me want to visit it one day. Through his stay in this confined space, the history of Russia was being told, setting the context of the story and giving it a realism that made the book all the more magical.
Gentlemanliness
Rostov is an impeccable gentleman through and through, in the most stereotypical way possible. Perhaps that was what it meant to be a gentleman back in the early 20th Century, as opposed to the modern-day definition of simply being respectful, though that is arguably the key characteristic. Rostov has a deep sense of confidence in himself and his beliefs, so much so that it is borderline obnoxious yet somehow charismatic. He is extremely well-read in the classics, though the author did not delve into Rostov’s political inclinations. He is well-mannered and observant of other etiquette, and he knows his food and wine very well (the depth of knowledge on the latter was quite inspirational, actually). All these attributes made him the perfect waiter in the hotel’s restaurant and enabled his last adventure.
Human Connections
Above all, what made this book so amazing were the human connections that Rostov made during his stay in the hotel. While it seems like Rostov (and the reader) was condemned to boredom given his house arrest, it was the friends and loved ones around him that made this “little” hotel seem so much bigger. I like to think of it as a story about how the little things in life matter the most, especially how we treat the people around us.
Review
This has really topped my list of books at the moment. I really wish I had read it sooner. It has an amazing storyline that pays off everything in the end. The writing is also incredible that combines fun and carefree elements with rich historical context. Towards the end, I just couldn’t peel myself away from the book. I rank it a solid 5/5.
Favourite Quotes and My Thoughts
If a man does not master his circumstances then he is bound to be mastered by them.
In some ways, this is the essence of the book. That despite the Rostov’s “unfortunate” circumstance, he steadfastly refused to simply bow down at its feet, but chose to make the full use of his time. This in turn allowed him to stumble upon the little girl which added colours and meaning to his life.
After all, what can a first impression tell us about someone we’ve just met for a minute in the lobby of a hotel? For that matter, what can a first impression tell us about anyone? Why, no more than a chord can tell us about Beethoven, or a brushstroke about Botticelli. By their very nature, human beings are so capricious, so complex, so delightfully contradictory, that they deserve not only our consideration, but our reconsideration — and our unwavering determination to withhold our opinion until we have engaged with them in every possible setting at every possible hour.
Indeed, humans are so complex. While first impressions matters, I hope this para makes us all pause to give our reconsideration over and over. To give each other a chance.
…what matters in life is not whether we receive a round of applause; what matters is whether we have the courage to venture forth despite the uncertainty of acclaim.
This is why despite Rostov’s confidence and borderline obnoxious, humility is at his core. And yes, courage is about making that leap when you are not sure about it. To do the difficult thing when there is a much easier option.
I’ll tell you what is convenient,” he said after a moment. “To sleep until noon and have someone bring you your breakfast on a tray. To cancel an appointment at the very last minute. To keep a carriage waiting at the door of one party, so that on a moment’s notice it can whisk you away to another. To sidestep marriage in your youth and put off having children altogether. These are the greatest of conveniences, Anushka — and at one time, I had them all. But in the end, it has been the inconveniences that have mattered to me most.”
Things that we consider are inconveniences might turn out to be the very thing that is worth fighting for. Honestly, the use of an aristocrat and planting him in the midst of a revolution that was about to ridding the upper class really just puts this point across so well.
Alexander Rostov was neither scientist nor sage; but at the age of sixty-four he was wise enough to know that life does not proceed by leaps and bounds. It unfolds. At any given moment, it is the manifestation of a thousand transitions. Our faculties wax and wane, our experiences accumulate and our opinions evolve — if not glacially, then at least gradually. Such that the events of an average day are as likely to transform who we are as a pinch of pepper is to transform a stew.
It is not about the big bangs that happen, but the everyday life that passes by us.
With Chekhov and Tolstoy, we Russians have set the bronze bookends on the mantelpiece of narrative…
Act one, scene one of The Nutcracker…I tell you that not only will every European child of the twentieth century know the melodies of The Nutcracker, they will imagine their Christmas just as it is depicted in the ballet; and on the Christmas Eves of their dotage, Tchaikovsky’s tree will grow from the floor of their memories until they are gazing up in wonder once again….
“Third,” said the Count. Then in lieu of explanation, he simply gestured to the Shalyapin’s entrance where a waiter suddenly appeared with a silver platter balanced on the palm of his hand. Placing the platter on the bar between the two foreigners, he lifted the dome to reveal a generous serving of caviar accompanied by blini and sour cream.
There was a section of the book where the Count overhears a conversation between a German and a British where the former was dissing on Russia, claiming that the “the only contribution the Russians had made to the West was the invention of vodka” and challenged anyone who could come up with more. The Count promptly took up the challenge gave quite an inspiring spiel on Russia’s contributions. He is indeed proud of his fatherland, despite the Communist government’s actions.
