REVIEW #31: A GENTLEMAN IN MOSCOW – AN EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMAN!

A Gentleman in Moscow
By Amor Towles
Windmill Books, 2016
I knew that I was going to love this novel when, within the first two pages, I had laughed out loud twice and underlined Rostov’s response to an inquiry about why he had written his poem, ‘Where Is It Now?’ How wonderfully astute of him to reply that the poem simply ‘demanded to be written’ and he chose to make himself available when it made ‘its demands.’ For me, that is the way all of my poems are written, so I was delighted to experience a warm glow of affinity. And when Prosecutor Vyshinsky accused him of using the poem as ‘a [revolutionary] call to action,’ I thoroughly approved of his assertion that ‘[a]ll poetry is a call to action.’ These were the first truths I recognized in Amor Towles novel and I eagerly began to await other great observations, born of Towles’ wisdom and experience. Moreover, I looked forward to reading a serious work of historical fiction written by someone with a sense of humour that even a setting of the most dire times and circumstances could not extinguish.

AND WHAT AN EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMAN!

Surely there is no other book that so powerfully and delightfully demonstrates the way our mindset can reposition our circumstances. Through the protagonist’s unlikely 9-year-old companion’s curiosity and ingenuity, Rostov becomes aware that he had not only allowed himself to be physically imprisoned in the Hotel Metropol, but had also been mentally confined to conventions that prevented him from discovering the worlds within his world that had remained hidden to him, until they were opened up and laid out before him by his fellow ‘prisoner.’ I loved the reminder that it is not only authoritarian regimes and protective parents that prevent us from seeing, and doing, and being the free and imaginative people we were created to be. For all his social sophistication and status, experience, historical knowledge and creativity, the debonaire Count Alexander Rostov found himself being led like a child, by a child, into hitherto unimagined realms that expanded his horizons far beyond the 100 square feet to which his world had shrunk thanks to the zealous authorities of the new Russian experiment in revolution.
In these meanderings over the Metropol, during his house arrest, the reader becomes privy to the meanderings of his mind as his memories are aroused and the reader is able to observe the contrast between the past and the present, raising our awareness of the consequences of revolution in Russia, as the old guard is disposed of by the new and institutions, people and places all take on an alien, unrecognizable character requiring enormous psychological, emotional and social adjustments as the new political reality unceremoniously sweeps away the old. Towles knows the importance of memories and stories as the glue that holds families and communities together and this message is conveyed through the stories recounted by Rostov. Some stories were absurd, some melancholy and regretful, some fiercely patriotic, some mocking and others deeply moving. Together, they reminded us of the importance of sharing our lives, both individually and communally, in order to reinforce our sense of our national character and values. Despite the specific socio-historical context of the novel, this message is for people of all ages and all nations. The fact that Towles includes people from all walks of life and all ages helps to emphasize its universal application. As Donne wrote long ago, ‘No man is an island,’ and Towles demonstrates that interconnection of our lives both in communities and nations. He wants us to have a bigger vision than the destructive individualism of the modern era. Moreover, his protagonist shows us the true meaning of living with differences of perspective and motivation. Rostov shows how to approach those who think and act differently from ourselves in a polite way that is more conducive to maintaining relationships than destroying them through loud and aggressive condemnation that is more likely to blast a hole in someone’s heart rather than change, or even heal, it. For modern readers, there is much wisdom to be gained from reading this book, so do not be deterred by the historical setting.

As the story unfolds, Towles manages to meander through history, politics, literature and film in a way that seems perfectly natural, despite the fact that his protagonist is under house arrest in a hotel in Moscow. This novel is a triumph of the human spirit to not only remain human but, astoundingly, to grow and be nourished with only limited resources and stimulation. When you hold within you a lifetime of memories and an understanding of the great writers and cinematic geniuses, you have endless wisdom at your disposal to nourish your mind and equip you for wise, philosophical reflection that enables you to thrive, despite the madness and mayhem of your social milieux. This is a tale for our times. It is uplifting and a timely reminder that quiet reflection, real relationships, circumspection and introspection pay much greater dividends than mass hysteria in the streets and media. There are lessons to be learnt in this charming tale, not the least of which are courage and perseverance. But courage and perseverance are not enough. The values that sustain us need to be worth fighting for and we need to be clear about what they are. Through his characters, Towles proves to be clever, creative and clear about what he stands for. I enjoyed this book as much this time round as I did the first time and commend it highly.