War and Peace
Info
- Author: Leo Tolstoy
- Genre: Classic Lit.
- Publisher: Konemann
- Type: Official Novel Book
- Release: Dec 01, 2000
- ASIN/ISBN: 3895086908
- Rating:
- Status: Read (1500 Pages)
Review
On Oct 25, 2007 Corinne said:
"Thanks to British narrator Frederick Davidson's performance, it is safe to say that there will not be a better recording of Tolstoy's masterpiece for some time. The heart of this drama is the metamorphosis of five families. Some peasant, some aristocratic. Amid the backdrop of the Napoleonic Wars. Each individual is immersed in experiences and conversations elucidating Tolstoy's themes of self-sacrifice and self-indulgence, anguish and ecstasy, diplomacy and deception, and religion and perdition. The complexities of character and plot are sometimes enigmatic, and names are often exhausting to recollect, but the genius of this book is everlasting. The impressive dialog sparkles with humor and wit, and the vivid scenes of battle are riveting. An entire universe is created by one of the foremost thinkers of the 19th century, and Davidson's exquisite narration heightens the perfection of this novel, regarded as one of the greatest in literature."
Details
The novel tells the story of five aristocratic families, particularly the Bezukhovs, the Bolkonskis, and the Rostovs, and the entanglements of their personal lives with the history of 1805-1813, principally Napoleon's invasion of Russia in 1812. As events proceed, Tolstoy systematically denies his subjects any significant free choice: the onward roll of history determines happiness and tragedy alike.
The standard Russian text is divided into four books (fifteen parts) and two epilogues: one mainly narrative, the other wholly thematic. While roughly the first half of the novel is concerned strictly with the fictional characters, the later parts, as well as one of the work's two epilogues, increasingly consist of (nonfictional) essays about the nature of war, political power, history, and historiography. Tolstoy interspersed these essays into the story in a way that defies fictional convention. Certain abridged versions removed these essays entirely, while others (published even during Tolstoy's life) simply moved these essays into an appendix.