Rules of Civility by Amor Towles
Rules of Civility by Amor Towles
Hardcover 335 pages
published by Viking (Penguin Group) July 26, 2011
ISNB-13: 9780670022694
*** Stay tuned next week for a giveaway of this title!!! ***
Type: {Impress Your Friends Read: notable; prize-winner or all around intelligent crowd conversation piece.}
Rating: {An Unputdownable: Couldn’t eat or sleep until I finished this book.}
Why You’re Reading It:
- You want to read the book that I am calling my favorite of the year, so far!
- New York City, 1930′s? You’re hooked!
- A smart, witty, & complex variety of characters are enough to convince you to read a book.
- Beautiful prose, continuously moving plots, rich details, and convincing story lines make a book a keeper in your eyes.
What I Thought:
Hello, and welcome to New York City in the 1930′s. Not only will you find the glamour, the music, the lingo, and the romance of one of the golden ages of the city, you will also meet one of the most refreshing protagonists in literature – Katey Kontent. Let’s follow Miss Kontent through a flashback to the year of 1938 – a year that defined her life – and meet the exquisite cast of characters that Amor Towles creates on the pages of his debut novel, The Rules of Civility. Against the backdrop of a time when anyone could become anything and women were starting to make their own paths to the top, Towles creates a peephole back through time that has you turning page after page wishing you could actually be there, even just for a moment, to catch a glimpse of the sleek and confident Anne, the charming Tinker, the lively Eve, sweet and sincere Wallace, or intelligent, witty, down-to-earth Katey. (This is the second book of the year with a character named Wallace. Though I’m still waiting for a female Wallace to emerge in literature — this book’s Wallace was a tribute to the name!)
My very favorite read this year, landing a spot on my favorite books ever, I was absorbed by this delicious novel. Balancing the thin line between eating it up in one bite but knowing how much I would regret doing that once it was finished – I paced myself so that I could enjoy the company of this book for as long as possible. Towles did an extraordinary job of creating the scene, making realistic characters, and spinning a plot that a reader can care about. The lessons in these pages are timeless even if the era in which they are portrayed is exact (and thoroughly enjoyable). I highly, highly recommend this book to everyone. There are very few books that I re-read, but this will be one of them. The charming dialogue, the poignant passages, the intelligent references, and the three-dimensional characters make this poetic, philosophical book, about life and the individual experiences that shape it, fun to read and easy to digest.
Over and over, I exclaimed to myself (out loud of course, because it doesn’t count if people don’t think you’re crazy), “I love this book. I LOVE this book!” I also can not get over how much I adore the character of Katey; and how fast they will probably turn this into a movie (and probably should), but how very, very sad I’ll be because this is a book that belongs to the imagination — it’s that magical.
If you’d like to enjoy a 1930′s inspired cocktail to set the ambiance while reading, try this one provided by the publisher for responsible adults of legal drinking age.
I never include a praise list from the media — but lest you didn’t get the point during my review…
|
PRAISE FOR RULES OF CIVILITY “Part love story, part social observation, 100 percent absorbing.” —Redbook
“It’s the Depression, and a gal Friday with a mouth like Dorthy Parker’s is dallying with the smart set. Turns out she’s not the only climber. A joyride through the ups and downs of 1930s high society.” —Good Housekeeping “[A] smashing debut… remarkable for its strong narrative, original characters and a voice influenced by Fitzgerald and Capote, but clearly true to itself.” —Publishers Weekly starred review
“Historical love story. Snappy dialog and sophisticated characters. A romantic look at the difficulties of being a New Yorker.” —Library Journal
“Discerning readers will draw parallels between Towles and the ominously ironic Edith Wharton while relishing the fact that the snappy dialogue and descriptive prose are wrapped in a compelling narrative.” —Booklist “[T]he characters are beautifully drawn, the dialogue is sharp and Towles avoids the period nostalgia and sentimentality to which a lesser writer might succumb. An elegant, pithy performance by a first-time novelist who couldn’t seem more familiar with his characters or territory.” —Kirkus
“Masterfully written and harking back to another time, in both style and subject, RULES OF CIVILITY is a richly pleasurable read. Absorbing, delightful, thoughtful, and well-crafted, it deserves to become a bestseller and to be read on planes, in armchairs, and in bed.” “Katey Kontent, the main character in RULES OF CIVILITY, is not only uncommon for her era and gender, but uncommon enough to stand out as what I look for in a fictional character. She serves as the moral, ethical and emotional backbone of all the characters, while also serving as the backbone of the novel. Love, loss, life and living ensue, with characters that mirror what it means to ‘make it in New York’, in all the possible permutations—the elusive, and highly individual search for wholeness, happiness, and people’s very personal definitions of success. In addition to a rich story with memorable characters, this book has occasional passages that take my breath away with the caliber of their writing.” —Rebecca Fitting, Greenlight Bookstore (Brooklyn, NY) “RULES OF CIVILITY is like reading an old film. Somehow it reminds me of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn meets High Society—and Amor writes brilliant dialogue. “RULES OF CIVILITY by Amor Towles…it’s stupendous, NYC in the 1930’s high life & low life…it’s amazing writing…so good!” —Karen Vail, Titcomb’s Bookstore
“Named after George Washington’s book of moral and social codes, Rules of Civility made me feel like I had stepped right into the 1930’s. Amor Towles brings an immense depth to his characters, especially Katey Kontent. She is one of the most dynamic female characters I’ve read in a while. Kontent is smart, both practical and somewhat of a dreamer, and always able to come up with a clever retort. The other characters are just as fantastic and teach Kontent all manner of things about life and love, wealth and status. There are also so many memorable and smart lines in this book that stand out as quotable life lessons. This may just be my favorite book of summer 2011!” —Lianna Nielsen, Bookworm of Edwards (Edwards, CO)
“This novel is so completely satisfying in all the ways I want a book to be satisfying. It has great characters, is a good story, well-told and well-written, and effortlessly transports the reader to another world. That world, seen through the eyes of the wonderfully spunky, 25 year old Katey Kontent, is late 1930s New York City. When she and her friend, Eve, meet the dashing Tinker Grey in a Greenwich Village jazz club on New Year’s Eve, it sets off a chain of events that will forever change her life. It’s a truly engrossing, pleasurable read.” —Amanda Friss, Three Lives Bookstore, NYC
|
Trackbacks
- Giveaway :: Rules of Civility by Amor Towles « Unputdownables
- Rules of Civility « Mine & Other Stories
- Towle Old English | Silver Flatware Value
- Top Ten :: Books of Summer 2011 « Unputdownables
- Book Review: Rules of Civility by Amor Towles | The Lit Witch: A Book Blog
- My Favorite Reads During 2011 « Unputdownables
Once again, what a cruel review !
I love this period of time as I already said in commenting “The girls of murder city” and I love NYC (in literature only because I never had the opportunity to visit NYC for real). The reference to Dorothy Parker & Scott Fitzgerald are too much for my *weak* will. Therefore, I’m going to order it via The Book Depository (they have it in paperback!) and maybe, am I going to avoid reading your review for a while for the benefit of my bank account
Thanks for this review, anyway
That’s amazing that you found it in paperback! As far as I know, it’s not available in paperback here yet. That’s great!
Haha! That or you’re going to have to start a wish list for later. I know the feeling though — am always adding books that I see others reading. I need to slow down!
The book have seemed to exist in paperback since the end of July (information from The Book Depository and Amazon.fr but, indeed, Amazon.com doesn’t have it in this format. Another mystery
). This one, I’ve ordered it … maybe to avoid extending my wishlist 
My problem concerns books in English because I can’t have most of them at the library. Books in French are mostly available at the library but as I read a lot of translated books, I need to wait 1. the translation 2. the release 3. the purchase by the library 4. the shelving. Sometimes, it’s too long for me
Interesting! It must have come out in paperback internationally when it came out in paperback here. Glad you got it. I hope you like it!
Ugh, that’s definitely a problem… no library. We need to get you a Nook someday so you can order e-books for cheaper (or I can “secretly” let you use my library number to download e-books from the library to your Nook).
I’m afraid that a Nook, even the simpliest one, is unaffordable… If you know a way to win one of them, I’m interested
Amazingly, my library has the whole Dickens’works in English but only “David Copperfield” in French… And, of course, I don’t intend to read Dickens in English 
And I live in a “big” city because, otherwise, I doubt that public libraries purchase books in English.
Wishful thinking (about the Nook)!
This is going on my to-read pile!
It should — I think you will LOVE it!
This is the second review of this book which has me wishing for a copy of my very own.
It’s really fantastic — I haven’t seen it on a lot of blogs yet, and not a lot of people I’m friends with on GR have reviews up. I was shocked! Good to know that others are seeing this one. It’s SUCH a delight!!
I noticed the cover recently (in Shelf Awareness, perhaps?) and immediately knew this would be one I’d enjoy. And after your review, definitely putting it on my “to be ordered” list! Glad to hear you loved it so much, and I adore when we can become champions for awesome books.
I saw that you had this on your to-read list on GR – I’ve been looking for other bloggers who’ve read it to see what they thought. I adored it, I hope you do too!
I can’t wait to try for it in the giveaway! I am sold!
Kim
It’s SO good. Definitely worth buying, but enter the giveaway first so you can see if you can get a free copy (even better!).
This one if one of my favorites this year as well. I absolutely loved it. Unique, unforgettable characters, and NYC.
There’s is something about the timeframe setting for this book that just makes it so appealing! I can’t wait to read it.
Wow. What a great review! Your summary definitely has me hooked. I’ve never heard of this one before, but now you have me itching to buy it! I love all things NYC, especially such a glamorous era as the 1930′s. Great characters and an engaging plot are definitely my cup of tea!
Oh good! Then you definitely need to grab this one! I went to me local Indie and they hadn’t heard about it either — I told them to make sure they read it and get some in stock soon.
Oooh, I almost bought this the other day but hesitated. I bought something else instead. He who hesitates is lost. Nah. I’m heading to the library next week.
I love an enthusiastic review.
If your library has it, definitely grab a copy (or put one on hold). I absolutely loved it. I imagine you might too!
Am COMPLETELY captivated. And when the inevitable movie materializes I wouldn’t THINK of betraying my imagination by not reading it first. My solemn promise!! Now off I go to Goodreads
I COMPLETELY think you’ll love it.
I won’t be offended if I’m wrong, though — so do let me know. You’re on GoodReads???!??!? How did I not know this??? Can we be friends?
The whole story line flows from one book into the next. It carries you strait into the next book.The characters are so well that you believe you are right there with them sharing their fears, joys, love and anger.