Laura Polding
https://www.goodreads.com/lpolding
My backpack weighs a ton, but the library was having a sale and I couldn’t resist. And I can justify buying seven hard copies of Agatha Christie books as research.
“Such is the magic of Christmas in childhood, thought the Count a little wistfully, that a single gift can provide one with endless hours of adventure while not even requiring one to leave one’s house.”
― A Gentleman in Moscow
― A Gentleman in Moscow
“He had said that our lives are steered by uncertainties, many of which are disruptive or even daunting; but that if we persevere and remain generous of heart, we may be granted a moment of lucidity—a moment in which all that has happened to us suddenly comes into focus as a necessary course of events, even as we find ourselves on the threshold of the life we had been meant to lead all along.”
― A Gentleman in Moscow
― A Gentleman in Moscow
“For his part, the Count had opted for the life of the purposefully unrushed. Not only was he disinclined to race toward some appointed hour - disdaining even to wear a watch - he took the greatest satisfaction when assuring a friend that a worldly matter could wait in favor of a leisurely lunch or stroll along the embankment. After all, did not wine improve with age? Was it not the passage of years that gave a piece of furniture its delightful patina? When all was said and done, the endeavors that most modern men saw as urgent (such as appointments with bankers and the catching of trains), probably could have waited, while those they deemed frivolous (such as cups of tea and friendly chats) had deserved their immediate attention.”
― A Gentleman in Moscow
― A Gentleman in Moscow
“Yes, thought the Count, the world does spin. In fact, it spins on its axis even as it revolves around the sun. And the galaxy turns as well, a wheel within a greater wheel, producing a chime of an entirely different nature than that of a tiny hammer in a clock. And when that celestial chime sounds, perhaps a mirror will suddenly serve its truer purpose - revealing to a man not who he imagines himself to be, but who he has become.”
― A Gentleman in Moscow
― A Gentleman in Moscow
“I’ll tell you what is convenient,” he said after a moment. “To sleep until noon and have someone bring you your breakfast on a tray. To cancel an appointment at the very last minute. To keep a carriage waiting at the door of one party, so that on a moment’s notice it can whisk you away to another. To sidestep marriage in your youth and put off having children altogether. These are the greatest of conveniences, Anushka—and at one time, I had them all. But in the end, it has been the inconveniences that have mattered to me most.”
― A Gentleman in Moscow
― A Gentleman in Moscow
Bay Area Book Geeks
— 194 members
— last activity Mar 03, 2026 07:31PM
This is a group currently on bookclubs.com. We have been reading and discussing books for now over ten years! This site is to keep a record of the boo ...more
Tackling the Pulitzer Prize Winners!
— 817 members
— last activity Jan 02, 2026 12:53PM
The Pulitzer Prize literature winners comprise a phenomenal collection of novels. Join us as we tackle the monumental task of reading all of the winne ...more
Silent Book Club New Haven
— 142 members
— last activity Oct 21, 2023 08:30PM
For members of the New Haven chapter of Silent Book Club!
Historical Romance
— 7292 members
— last activity Feb 26, 2026 06:05AM
A group for people who enjoy reading and discussing adult historical romance books. This group is not for regular fiction, historical fiction, non ...more
Laura’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Laura’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
More friends…
Favorite Genres
Polls voted on by Laura
Lists liked by Laura
























































