Order from a Major Online Bookstore
Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine
Save Your Time And Money
| AnyBook4Less.com | Order from a Major Online Bookstore |
|
| Home | Store List | FAQ | Contact Us | | ||
| Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine Save Your Time And Money |
||
 |
Title: War and Peace: The Maude Translation, Backgrounds and Sources, Criticism (Norton Critical Edition) by Leo Tolstoy, Louise Shanks Maude, Aylmer Maude, George Gibian ISBN: 0-393-96647-X Publisher: W.W. Norton & Company Pub. Date: January, 1996 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $19.90 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.49 (212 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: A Masterpiece of Russian Literature
Comment: Oh, if I only I could read Russian! It would be worth learning that language to read this book in its original language. Tolstoy is well known for several books he wrote, but "War and Peace" is his crowning achievement. Out of all the distinguished works of Russian literature (Turgenev, Dostoyevsky, and others), "War and Peace" is the Atlas that holds all the others upon its shoulders. It beckons you to conquer its sheer size and scope, and its reputation is one of the most formidable in literary history. Surprisingly, War and Peace is not difficult, and is a cracking good tale.
An adequate summary of the book, in 1000 words, is impossible. Tolstoy places his characters in the context of the Napoleonic wars. His emphasis is on three "characters": the Bolkonsky family, the Rostov family, and Pierre Bezuhov. Along the way, dozens of other characters appear: Denisov, Dolohov, Helene, Kutuzov (my favorite), and Anatole quickly spring to mind. Even Napoleon and the Russian Tsar Alexander make appearances. All aspects of life appear, in one carefully crafted scene after another. Love, death, marriage, children, combat; all come together into a seamless whole. Saying that these people become real through Tolstoy's pen is an understatement. Despite the different time frame and different society, their struggles are our struggles. Pierre's search for meaning in life will find many sympathizers in our fast-paced world. Andrei's death scene is achingly realistic, and it you aren't touched in some way by it, you should check your pulse. Even Natasha, the hyper vivacious Rostov who grows into a responsible family matriarch, is a recognizable figure in today's world (as anyone who knows teenage girls can attest). It doesn't matter that these people are 19th century Russians; they are people acting on the stage of humanity, and are timeless. The end of the story, with everyone settled down in family life, reflects Tolstoy's own joys of family and home.
Occasionally, Tolstoy lifts the curtain and reveals the method behind the story. This method is Tolstoy's unwavering belief in the abilities of man. It is no mistake that the peasantry is represented as an ideal of man. Pierre's embrace of peasant simplicity towards life and Nicolai's careful cultivation of peasant ways are issues that Tolstoy himself dealt with in late 19th century Russia. The Populist movement in Russia in the 1890's is an extension of this idea. Tolstoy takes his faith in the peasant, and with it, posits a whole philosophy of history. His philosophy of history, in short, sees history as the result of millions of individual actions. History is not the prerogative of the elite, but the result of the actions of all humans. I see some reviews despised these sections, accusing Tolstoy of repetition and error. While the theory may be questionable at times, it does fit in with Russia's growing awareness of the peasantry and its role in the future of the country.
I had a few problems with this Penguin edition. First, printing this monster in one volume was not a good idea. Expect pins-and-needles sensations in your hands and fingers. I suggest at least two volumes, maybe three, for better and easier reading.
Second, I wonder if Rosemary Edmonds trimmed the translation a little. I find it hard to believe that Tolstoy did not provide more information on some of the characters. Bagration's death is announced but never described. We also never find out what happens to Dolohov. Prince Vasili figures prominently in the early parts of the book but barely appears in the rest of the story. Maybe Tolstoy did leave this stuff out, but I would like to know for sure. Other than these objections, the translation seems excellent.
Third, this edition needs a better introduction. I am loath to recommend this, as introductions are usually boring or useless. For "War and Peace," an introduction longer than three or four pages is needed. The introduction in the book is inadequate because it doesn't elucidate Tolstoy's philosophy and it gives only superficial clarification of characters.
You owe it to yourself to read this book. My copy set on the shelf for a long time, too. It took me about eight days to read the book. I made sure to read at least 100 pages a day. On at least one day I read 250 pages. I wanted to get it done fast so I could get the full effect. Spreading this monster out over months would not be a good idea. Highly Recommended.
Rating: 5
Summary: The Eye of God
Comment: Ever since I was a teen (I'm 51) I tried reading War and Peace. The furthest I ever got was something like Page 80. Six summers ago, I thought, what the heck, give it another shot. After Page 100 or so, the book picked up steam, and I was absolutely awed as I've seldom been by all the great books I've read in my life. That's what I want to share with potential readers of this great book. Stick with it. It's like a trickling stream that grows and grows from many tributaries into a grand wide raging river. It's got everything in it, as if it were written by God. Tolstoy saw everything. There are so many, many unforgettable scenes in it. My favorite two are the costume party at the country estate (pure magic!) and the great wolf-hunting scene in which the wolf actually takes on a personality under the all-knowing skill of Tolstoy's great pen. In just a line or two, Tolstoy could actually get inside the "soul" of even an animal! I can only imagine how great this book is in the original Russian. After War and Peace, I devoured Anna Karenina, which is in many ways an even greater book. I'd recommend people read War and Peace with Cliff's Notes, as I did, because you get a sense of the historical background and it helps you from getting the hundreds of characters mixed up. War and Peace is more than a novel. It's an Everest of creation. Please stick with it!
Rating: 4
Summary: One More Time.....
Comment: After reading such a huge book, it's tempting to congratulate oneself and then accord it the status of a great piece of literature (perhaps the argument running that it must have been great to hold one's attention for so long). I suppose that others could find its length daunting or its pace too slow, such that they don't see the point of wasting the time it inevitably demands.
So, how to assess "War and Peace"? I've read it three times now, albeit I've left a number of years between each reading. I found that re-reading is almost a new experience: that is to say, so vast is its scale, that there is always something new to discover or reflect upon, something missed or unappreciated before. Perhaps this is partly the result of the passing years causing one's perception both as a human and a reader to change. But there had to be sufficient "raw material" in the novel to provoke such reactions, a tribute to Tolstoy's skill.
This time, I was struck by Tolstoy's ability to describe three-dimensional characters, and to develop them - none are really static, each is a mixture of emotions and attitudes, each are imperfect, make mistakes and grow emotionally. Even the worst of them have some redeeming features. Tolstoy's eye was sharp: Bitsky was "one of those men who select their opinions like their clothes, according to the prevailing fashion"; Berg "measured his life not by years but by promotions". Bitsky and Berg are still around! Tolstoy holds up a mirror to human traits and gives the reader the chance to reflect.
Unfortunately, there are newly-observed faults in the book. The end is a real anticlimax. And as the novel progressed, in one sense it became less of a novel and more Tolstoy's critique of contemporary historical analysis (and a repetitive critique at that, ending in a forty page treatise). I'd got the message earlier on and didn't need it hammering into me.
A great work, yes, but with its faults, and one to enjoy time and time again.
G Rodgers
 |
Title: Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky, Constance Garnett ISBN: 0553211757 Publisher: Bantam Pub. Date: 01 June, 1984 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
 |
Title: Anna Karenina by Mona Simpson, Leo Tolstoy ISBN: 067978330X Publisher: Modern Library Pub. Date: 10 October, 2000 List Price(USD): $9.95 |
 |
Title: The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky, Konstanfin Mochulski ISBN: 0553212168 Publisher: Bantam Pub. Date: 01 April, 1984 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
 |
Title: The Idiot (Oxford World's Classics) by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Alan Myers, Fyodor M. Dostoevsky ISBN: 0192834118 Publisher: Oxford University Press Pub. Date: May, 1998 List Price(USD): $7.95 |
 |
Title: A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, Frederick Busch ISBN: 0451526562 Publisher: Signet Pub. Date: August, 1997 List Price(USD): $4.95 |
Thank you for visiting www.AnyBook4Less.com and enjoy your savings!
Copyright� 2001-2021 Send your comments
