A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles will be featured on the Radio 2 Book Club on Monday 20 February.
We have two reading group sets (10 copies) of A Gentleman in Moscow to be won on our Noticeboard.
Not yet a member of Reading Groups for Everyone? Sign up here
There is also an exclusive extract available for you to read.
A Gentleman in Moscow
War and Peace meets The Grand Budapest Hotel
In 1922 Count Rostov is deemed an unrepentant aristocrat by a Bolshevik tribunal. He is sentenced to house arrest in The Metropol, a grand hotel across the street from the Kremlin.
Rostov, an indomitable man of erudition and wit, has never worked a day in his life, and must now live in an attic room while some of the most tumultuous decades in Russian history are unfolding outside the hotel’s doors. Unexpectedly, his reduced circumstances provide him a doorway into a much larger world of emotional discovery.
Brimming with humour, a glittering cast of characters, and one beautifully rendered scene after another, this singular novel casts a spell as it relates the Count’s endeavour to gain a deeper understanding of what it means to be a man of purpose.
Selection panel review
The book was selected with the help of a panel made up of Reading Agency and library staff from across the UK.
Our reading panel loved A Gentleman in Moscow – here are some of their comments:
“This is a beautifully-written novel. I loved the way Towles brings the Count’s story full circle; some exceptionally entertaining writing about food and hotel etiquette too!”
“I think this is the best book I have read this decade, I loved it for the nuance, the flavours, the characters, the Orwellian double-speak. I have now gone out and bought both his other titles!”
“A rich plot written with such style, wit and warmth, I really loved this novel.”
About the author
Amor Towles was born and raised in the Boston area. He graduated from Yale University and received an MA in English from Stanford University. An investment professional for over twenty years, he now devotes himself full time to writing. His first novel Rules of Civility was a breakout hit of 2011. His stay in suite 217 of the Hotel Metropol in Moscow – the very place the first Soviet constitution was drafted – inspired the setting of his latest book. Towles lives in Manhattan with his wife and two children. A Gentleman in Moscow is a 6 Week New York Times bestseller.
A word from Amor
“Many would define a library as a place you go to get a book that you want; but that isn’t quite right. A library is the place you go to get the book that you don’t know you want. It’s that book that happens to be there on the shelf just to the left of the one you thought you were looking for and it promises you an instance of unanticipated illumination.”
Read more about how Amor came to write A Gentleman in Moscow. There is also a lot more information on his website.
Get involved
Tune in to Simon Mayo’s Drivetime show on Monday 20 February to hear a live interview with Amor.
Have you read A Gentleman in Moscow? You can share your thoughts with us on Twitter. You can also follow the author at Amor Towles and @windmillbooks or use #AGentlemanInMoscow.
You can also see what other readers thought or add the book to your group’s reading list.
Want to find out more? Take a look at the Radio 2 Book Club Twitter feed or find out more on the Radio 2 Book Club website.
