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Nicholas Gatov lost his wife years ago. He has never remarried, but it isn't grief that has kept him single. This professor of literature at George Washington University has become joyfully engrossed in his job, his observations of humankind, and in watching the performances of Patricia Holman, a gifted but underrated stage actress. Born in Russia shortly before his parents fled the Communist regime, he nonetheless does not allow the darkness he and others experience to dim the light of his hope for eventual world peace and harmony. He takes opportunities to learn from whomever he can, whether that person is a disenchanted would-be teacher, a nation's secular head of state, or the Pope himself. Can even a suicidal IT expert who never found peace in life offer it to others from beyond the grave if they are willing to critically read his despondent writings about American slavery and Mosaic law?
Through the fictional utopia of Lordsville, Kovalev presents a philosophy in which all humans, longing to replace turmoil and intolerance with universal peace and beauty, could do so if they resolved that they would. The idealized society includes ready access by ordinary characters like Nicholas to influential figures like the Pope, the president of the United States, and the king of Great Britain. Such idealism continues as these world leaders treat Nicholas and the IT expert's widow as equals and heed their opinions. Kovalev is a trained actor whose passion for the stage finds expression in the introspective character of Patricia Holman, who performs a thoughtful monologue as the poet Emily Dickinson. Notable is the story's complete lack of female objectification. Women are simply identified as women, after which their actions demonstrate their personhood. Those who profess a continued faith in humanity might enjoy this book.