Once
in a while a rare book comes along that has the gentility of another time,
another place. "A Gentleman in Moscow" is that kind of book, although
one would not necessarily expect such from its premise: a Russian aristocrat is
detained by a Bolshevik Tribunal in the 1920s in Moscow and sentenced to life
imprisonment in an empty service room in the elegant Metropol Hotel instead of
hard labor in Siberia. Why? Because he supposedly wrote a poem in
1905 that favored the seeds of the Russian Revolution, which took place in
1917. Thus, those who came into power were lenient, though not totally
forgiving.
Count
Alexander Rostov (remember the Rostovs in "War and Peace"? Of
course you do!), the aristocrat in question, is a gentleman to the very core.
The one percent of the aristocracy that ruled Russia under the Czars
taught him everything he needed to know in 19th century Russian society, but
nothing that worked in a 20th century Russian police state, masquerading as a
state ruled by "the will of the people." How will he survive?
In fact, how can he? The fact that he not only does,
escaping at one very low point a suicide attempt, but triumphs, over an almost
impossible situation, is the substance of this very unusual novel.
I
say "unusual" when I could just as well say "unique."
This novel, be it mainstream, has no profanity, no explicit sex, no
violence, well, none of the usual things that seem to carry most audiences
forward today. It is not exactly a sentimental story--given the
background of its time and place it could not be--but a story told nonetheless
in both a sentimental--and at times quite humorous--manner. Perhaps it is
a reminder that certain things, like courtesy, manners and the refined pursuit
of cultural goals, never quite leave a civilization, even though they may be
shoved to the back burner. If you can do without a compelling story line
or in-depth characters, moving toward a smashing climax (there is a
surprise ending), this book could well be for you!
No comments:
Post a Comment