• Rules of Civility

  • A Novel
  • By: Amor Towles
  • Narrated by: Rebecca Lowman
  • Length: 12 hrs and 4 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (9,635 ratings)

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Rules of Civility  By  cover art

Rules of Civility

By: Amor Towles
Narrated by: Rebecca Lowman
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Editorial reviews

Amor Towles is approaching 50 and making a living as a principal at an investment firm. One wouldn’t expect his debut novel to be told from the perspective of a wise-cracking young lady of 25, but Towles is good at surprises. Katherine Kontent (“like the state of being”) is a legal secretary trying to climb the social ladder and squeeze all the juice out of Manhattan. She is the only slightly less seductive sidekick to Eve, who leaves her wealthy family behind to act like a mash-up of Christopher Isherwood's Sally Bowles and Truman Capote's Holly Golightly. It's the Upper East Side in the winter of 1939 — ripe for ripping off F. Scott Fitzgerald or Ernest Hemingway or whatever writer you prefer from the era of roaring alcoholism, but Amor Towles doesn’t take the bait.

Neither does narrator Rebecca Lowman, who has good fun with the zippy dinner conversations while managing to keep Kate's sporting sense of dignity intact as both lovers and day jobs threaten to collapse her up-and-comingness. Lowman, who has a long string of television series bit parts from Will & Grace to Law & Order to her credit, slips easily into the everywoman role and adds notes of believable determination to our heroine's struggle for better circumstances. Who will marry Tinker Grey and who will get the promotion at Conde Nast are interesting plots, but none of this is the surprise - the plot surprise is all the more devastating. Towles gives us some glitter, but he doesn't gloss, and that is the biggest surprise. The women in this book are fraught with the tremendous burden of appearing charming but unintelligent, and Lowman lets in enough sharp tones to give their dilemmas and revelations a substantial bite. Towles has fleshed out these familiar archetypes in a unique direction, so much more rich and thick than the flat characters with which novels of this time period are usually laden. Megan Volpert

Publisher's summary

From the number one New York Times best-selling author of The Lincoln Highway and A Gentleman in Moscow, a “sharply stylish” (Boston Globe) book about a young woman in post-Depression era New York who suddenly finds herself thrust into high society - now with over one million readers worldwide.

On the last night of 1937, 25-year-old Katey Kontent is in a second-rate Greenwich Village jazz bar when Tinker Grey, a handsome banker, happens to sit down at the neighboring table. This chance encounter and its startling consequences propel Katey on a year-long journey into the upper echelons of New York society - where she will have little to rely upon other than a bracing wit and her own brand of cool nerve.

With its sparkling depiction of New York’s social strata, its intricate imagery and themes, and its immensely appealing characters, Rules of Civility won the hearts of readers and critics alike.

Hear why Rules of Civility is Our Book of the Summer.
©2011 Amor Towles (P)2011 Penguin

What listeners say about Rules of Civility

Average customer ratings
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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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Not Relatable

socialite looking for a step up into money world. lots of old money earned by someone else and the kids spending it.

More emphasis on Tinker would have been nice...he was genuine.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Pleasure to listen

Well written and well read. Nice details of NYC and some of its peoples in 30’s, their reaction to global military struggles of some other nations. Great acting out of NYC conversations as well as soothing voice reading the narrative. Probably great for driving.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Great story

Amor Towels is a good story teller. enjoyed his book. Interesting characters and storyline. performance was very good.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Nice period book

Well written and presented. Good flow and easy to follow. Excellent character development. Captivating story. End a bit off putting

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Clarity grows with time

Maybe it's just me, but I was slightly confused in the first third. I couldn't quite tell where this was going. But then once I understood the premise, and the very story was about the almost mundane life that this interesting man "chose" to lead, it became one of the best books I've ever read. So beautifully written, such a wonderful depiction of how one acts when their life becomes very very small, but they somehow make simplicity dignified, meaningful, and beautiful.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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enjoyed this

greatly enjoyed this, great narrator and I quite liked the progression of the story. IT doesn't read like a typical modern novel, which is a good thing.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Could taste the martinis

I could taste the martinis, hear the jazz and feel the 1930's NYC pavement under my feet. I enjoyed the writing, the story and the narrator. I had to listen to this book a second time, which I hardly ever do. As I read this book, I wondered how my life would have been different in the 1930's as a woman, and what choices I would have made. There were many paths in this book, many ways that people were true to themselves.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Giant Yawn

I read Towles' Gentleman From Moscow and thoroughly enjoyed it, but what a mistake this next one is. I am still asking myself why I finished the whole thing ... perhaps the tiny parts where the book actually moved along ... kept my hope going I guess. Love his turn of a phrase and all, but the only thing worse than the turtlesque-moving story itself is the actual listing of the 100+ rules of civility at the end.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Elegant prose, poignant story

A bit slow to start, but the elegant writing will put you in New York City, 1938. Compelling characters and a beautiful rendering of the social melieu of that time and place. Excellent narration.

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3 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Hats off to Towels and Lowman!

Would you consider the audio edition of Rules of Civility to be better than the print version?

Part of the reason I enjoyed this book so much was because of the incredible narration by Rebecca Lowman. She has the perfect voice to fit the character Katey Kontent, and executes all the other characters really well. Lowman is my new favorite narrator.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Rules of Civility?

This is a beautifully written story. Towels tells the tales with a lyrical and poetic style reminiscent of Steinbeck, of F. Scott Fitzgerald. Every chapter dances along in perfect rhythm.

What about Rebecca Lowman’s performance did you like?

I very much enjoyed the story and highly recommend it, but Rebecca Lowman's performance took the novel from great to outstanding.

Any additional comments?

If you're looking for a good listen, this is it! The story takes one back to a nostalgic time in New York City. It's a wonderful coming age novel about love, friendship, heartbreak and self realization and fulfillment of one's own potential as well of that of others.

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2 people found this helpful