The Beginning of Spring (Flamingo) [Paperback]

Imagine Moscow in 1913: The Russian society is in transition; traditional political structures are being challenged by popular movements; industrial technological advances are leading to workers' unrests; an atmosphere of foreboding is palpable in every strata of society including among the English expatriates in Moscow. Frank Reid, an English business man, born and raised in Moscow, is highly conscious of the changing political landscape. After years of training in Western Europe he has returned to Moscow with his young family to take over his father's large printing press operations. Following an apparently harmonious and organized period during which the family had settled, Frank's wife Nellie suddenly departs without warning, leaving Frank to balance challenges at work with new responsibilities at home with his three children.

Penelope Fitzgerald's novel weaves a delicate and gracefully imagined portrayal of the man at the centre, his attempts at normalcy despite inner doubts and conflicts. In fact, all her characters are exquisitely drawn and remain memorable beyond the reading of the novel. Selwyn Crane, the poetry-writing accountant who is also a follower of the Tolstoyan movement, is one such character, who is endearing despite his rather bumbling personality. Amongst other, possibly questionable, advice he recommends to Frank to hire the young Russian peasant girl, Lisa Ivanovna, as a governess for the children. She remains a mysterious, yet attractive, character and may not be as innocent and placid as she appears.

Frank's consistent efforts to stay out of the political turmoil of the moment, by refusing to use his presses for political pamphlets and other such material, are in some way mirrored by the author's concentration on the private lives of her protagonists. However, the complex realities of the day are always present, bubbling under the surface, subtly evoked and touched on by Fitzgerald, almost as an aside, through brief vignettes of specific incidents or, and especially, as part of the different lively conversations. Reading the exchanges between Frank and his various very engaged counterparts - whether other expatriates or Russian business partners - is a constant delight.

While the novel is not really plot driven at all, it is full of off-beat scenarios that underscore Fitzgerald's much appreciated sense of humour and irony. Finally, Moscow in March cannot be imagined realistically without the weather. Fitzgerald succeeds superbly as she weaves her suggestive descriptions of the unpleasantness of the wet, grey, icy, foggy atmosphere of the late winter into the story and the moods of the character. One scene stands for many: Frank takes a different, rather unpleasant route home through slush and ice along the river to escape an encounter with an older English woman who the minister's wife may want to suggest as a governess for Frank's children.

Fitzgerald's writing is a delight for her lively depicted characters, her often understated yet affecting portrayal of social conditions and human relationships, set in a specific period of time. Having previously read The Blue Flower with great interest and enjoyment, I was highly motivated to read this novel. Her novel adds a lovely intricate portrait of a group of Muscovites that included English expatriates to the rich Russian literature dealing with that period in time. Finally, I have to admit to a personal bias as regards the theme and time characterized in this novel. Having inherited a distant family connection with Moscow, I have visited Moscow several time and studied Russian language and culture. Despite the time lag to 1913, some aspects of Fitzgerald's novel still ring very authentic to me. [Friederike Knabe]

Did your copy have 187 pages? If it had more, I would very much like to know how your version finishes. I and others have commented on how Ms. Fitzgerald leaves a certain ambiguity at the end of some of her works. She invites her readers to finish the story based on what she has shared, or the reader has understood. This time around, I first felt I was reading a work like Dickens' unfinished, "The Mystery of Edwin Droid". However this time it was a bit abrupt, a door opens, the reader pops their head in, and, she decapitates the reader with an efficiency that Dr. Guillotine would have admired.

This is the fifth of her nine novels I have read, and it will be difficult to top this work. Everything I have read has been excellent, so the pleasure of reading her work is just a matter of degree. The complaint as stated at the beginning is more frustration than anything else. So much appears to be shared with the reader that ultimately deception is far too mild a word, and then when you think the puzzle is complete; she adds another thousand potential pieces by bringing the story to an abrupt halt.

But the story really is quite complete. After you read what she has written a logical explanation follows. She sets the process in motion, steps back, and knows the reader will continue to follow her lead. She pulls the strings of a reader like twine on a top. Once pulled she can step back, the top continues to spin. She is as manipulative as any writer I have had the pleasure to read, she also respects her readers with the presumption they will read what she gives them, and though left wanting more, will be able to put their own finish to what she has written.

I cannot use any names, as it would ruin the piece. She produces one character that is such a brilliant fraud, that when his actions become known, his victims are left with mouths agape when they should be throttling him. As she has done in other works, she has children that are well beyond precocious and other players that the reader is routinely lead to underrate.

Ms. Penelope Fitzgerald was a great discovery for me, as I knew nothing of her or her work. She started writing late in life, and sadly died a few brief years ago. The collective work she has left behind is as good a written legacy as any writer could have left, for all who love to read.

It's only 187 pages long but this little book is something special. The Moscow of 1913 is evoked with love and humour, and the eccentric English family and their associates whose domestic dramas and eccentricities are played out against its backdrop are brought skilfully to life.
I can do no better than to quote Jan Morris on the back cover:
"For the life of me I can't decide how properly to respond to this book. Whether it contains a latent moral or allegorical message, or whether it is simply a tour de force of craft and imagination, I have not the faintest idea. I only know that it is one of the most skilful and utterly fascinating novels I have read for years. I cannot imagine any kind of educated reader who would not get a thrill from this gloriously peculiar book".