The Beginning of Spring takes place in Moscow, Russia in the spring of 1913.
On the first page, Nellie Reid, wife of the principal character, Frank Reid, packs up her three children and leaves for England. She leaves a brief note for Frank, his first notice of her intent. The note does not say why she left or if she has any intention of returning.
Frank Reid is an Englishman born in Moscow. His father arrived there in the 1870s to start a business importing printing machinery and died a few years before the start of the story. Frank has lived there all his life with the exception of a few years in England to learn the printing business. Though he speaks Russian fluently, he is still considered an Englishman. When Frank returns to Moscow to take over.....
