O, The Oprah Magazine, described this, Amor Towles’ second novel, as “irresistible….an elegant period piece…as lavishly filigreed as a Fabergé egg.” Towles takes us to The Metropol, the famous Russian hotel where, as Amazon reviewer Al Woodworth writes, “movie stars and Russian royalty mingle, where Bolsheviks plot revolutions and intellectuals discuss the merits of contemporary Russian writers, where spies spy, thieves thieve and the danger of twentieth century Russia lurks outside its marbled walls.” It’s also where wealthy Count Alexander Rostov lives, under house arrest for a poem deemed incendiary by the Bolsheviks. It’s also where he meets Nina, a precocious and wide-eyed young girl who holds the keys to the entire hotel.

Despite being confined to the hallway of the hotel, the Count’s life—and the novel—is absorbingly filled with capers, culture, and adventure.

“In all ways a great novel, a nonstop pleasure brimming with charm, personal wisdom, and philosophic insight . . .This is a book in which the cruelties of the age can’t begin to erase the glories of real human connection and the memories it leaves behind. A masterly encapsulation of modern Russian history, this book more than fulfills the promise of Towles’ stylish debut, Rules of Civility.” 
—Kirkus Reviews (starred) 

Mishka’s Concern

Jane brought this Art Institute video about Russian art in the wake of the revolution to our attention. It’s a stunning little video: