- Paperback: 352 pages
- Publisher: Wordsworth Editions Ltd; New edition edition (17 Jan 2000)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 1840221232
- ISBN-13: 978-1840221237
- Product Dimensions: 19.6 x 12.4 x 1.8 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 2,449,465 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
Childhood, Boyhood, Youth (Penguin Classics)
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Product Description
Product Description
This trilogy provides an introduction to Tolstoy's literary method and his major preoccupations - love, morality and the avoidance of violence.
About the Author
Count Leo Tolstoy (1828 1910) was born in central Russia. After serving in the Crimean War, he retired to his estate and devoted himself to writing, farming, and raising his large family. His novels and outspoken social polemics brought him world fame.
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First Sentence
ON the 12th of August, 18-, the third day after my birthday when I had attained the age of ten, and had received such wonderful presents, Karl Ivanitch woke me at seven o'clock in the morning by striking at a fly directly above my head, with a flapper made of sugar-paper and fastened to a stick. Read the first page
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ON the 12th of August, 18-, the third day after my birthday when I had attained the age of ten, and had received such wonderful presents, Karl Ivanitch woke me at seven o'clock in the morning by striking at a fly directly above my head, with a flapper made of sugar-paper and fastened to a stick. Read the first page
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
In these three connected stories and in a semi-autobiographical way through a young boy called Nicolas Petrovitch, Tolstoy recalls his earliest experiences and influences in an insightful and readable manner. Prominent in Childhood evidently are recollections of his parents, his father a stern presence, a man of business, but also a gambler and a man of contradictions in his behaviour and in relation to his family; his mother largely absent when their father takes the boys away to the countryside, the young boy only returning to see his mother on her deathbed. The short account of these early years however also picks up initial impressions of friendships and a first childhood sweetheart.
How the family household is affected by the mother's death is seen in Boyhood, the family reunited in his grandmother's household. This section also deals with Nicolai's education and preparation for university, the young lad coming to an awareness of himself in relation to his brother and others around him. The blind acceptance of how things are and always have been in relation to society, family and relationships starts to waver, replaced by questions on why things should necessarily be so and cultivating ideals - youthful ideals certainly, but formative ones nonetheless. Attempting to identify his place in the world, Nicolai attempts to apply philosophical observations to them, realising however that abstract thought that doesn't take into account the human element is worthless.
The narrative continuation of Nicolai's growth and education falters somewhat in Youth, which contains rather more poetic reminiscence and youthful philosophising. The details of his university entrance examinations and an early introduction into making social calls are not particularly interesting, but there are some interesting meditations on love, duty, beauty, nature, happiness and virtue - qualities that Nicolai is unable to reconcile with an ugliness of appearance that shames him, but he determines to improve himself morally and physically. These latter part of the book isn't always greatly interesting and tends to stray from the purposeful direction of the earlier parts, but overall, this is an intriguing and thoughtful account of a childhood from Tolstoy's unique perspective.
How the family household is affected by the mother's death is seen in Boyhood, the family reunited in his grandmother's household. This section also deals with Nicolai's education and preparation for university, the young lad coming to an awareness of himself in relation to his brother and others around him. The blind acceptance of how things are and always have been in relation to society, family and relationships starts to waver, replaced by questions on why things should necessarily be so and cultivating ideals - youthful ideals certainly, but formative ones nonetheless. Attempting to identify his place in the world, Nicolai attempts to apply philosophical observations to them, realising however that abstract thought that doesn't take into account the human element is worthless.
The narrative continuation of Nicolai's growth and education falters somewhat in Youth, which contains rather more poetic reminiscence and youthful philosophising. The details of his university entrance examinations and an early introduction into making social calls are not particularly interesting, but there are some interesting meditations on love, duty, beauty, nature, happiness and virtue - qualities that Nicolai is unable to reconcile with an ugliness of appearance that shames him, but he determines to improve himself morally and physically. These latter part of the book isn't always greatly interesting and tends to stray from the purposeful direction of the earlier parts, but overall, this is an intriguing and thoughtful account of a childhood from Tolstoy's unique perspective.
7 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This semi-autobiographical youth memories are characteristic for the life of a young member of the Russian tsarist high society.
The main character wants to be a young man `comme il faut': `The comme il faut people I respected and considered worthy of being on terms of equality with me; the comme il ne faut pas I pretended to despise but in reality hated. The lower classes did not exist for me, I despised them completely.'
This stands in sharp contrast with: `His tendency of ecstatic adoration of the ideal virtue and a conviction that the purpose of man's life is continually to perfect himself. At that time it seemed very possible to improve all men, to destroy all the vices and miseries of mankind.'
But as the young man states himself: `noble words seldom go with noble deeds.'
His life is not without problems: his father, who loses all credit with his son, is a big gambler and doesn't give a damn for his estate. His mother adores her husband and forgives him everything. But she dies when the main character is still young. He receives an aristocratic education and, unsurprisingly, his life goes on very smoothly with `dancing' problems, adolescent loves and student exams.
This book contains beautiful pictures of the Russian countryside and lively childhood memories, but it is rather innocent stuff.
Only for Tolstoy fans.
For a picture of the lower classes (still not the `people of the abyss'), I recommend Maksim Gorky's `My Childhood'.
The main character wants to be a young man `comme il faut': `The comme il faut people I respected and considered worthy of being on terms of equality with me; the comme il ne faut pas I pretended to despise but in reality hated. The lower classes did not exist for me, I despised them completely.'
This stands in sharp contrast with: `His tendency of ecstatic adoration of the ideal virtue and a conviction that the purpose of man's life is continually to perfect himself. At that time it seemed very possible to improve all men, to destroy all the vices and miseries of mankind.'
But as the young man states himself: `noble words seldom go with noble deeds.'
His life is not without problems: his father, who loses all credit with his son, is a big gambler and doesn't give a damn for his estate. His mother adores her husband and forgives him everything. But she dies when the main character is still young. He receives an aristocratic education and, unsurprisingly, his life goes on very smoothly with `dancing' problems, adolescent loves and student exams.
This book contains beautiful pictures of the Russian countryside and lively childhood memories, but it is rather innocent stuff.
Only for Tolstoy fans.
For a picture of the lower classes (still not the `people of the abyss'), I recommend Maksim Gorky's `My Childhood'.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
14 reviews
25 of 27 people found the following review helpful
Great introduction to Tolstoy and his first ideas on love
8 Mar 2000
Format:Hardcover
This is Tolstoy's first trilogy, his first ever attempt at fiction. Semi-autobiographical and full of precious recollections of those great little things in life we all cherish so much, it is already a magnificent introduction to Tolstoy's great insightful mind and his striving for love and goodness through his characters. One Russian critic called "Childhood, Boyhood and Youth" the poetry of one's childhood. It truly is. Among the numerous little occurrences and funny stories, you can deeply feel the purpose of the book: love is everything that matters in this world and without love, our existence loses its meaning and our aspirations are dead. You can see it especially in Mother's letter and the character of Natalia Savishna. If you decide to read this wonderful book, make sure you picked the right translation. There are two slightly different versions of this work, thanks to the Russian editor Katkov, who made a lot of changes to the original without Tolstoy's consent. This "bad" version is represented in C.J. Hogarth's translation (Everyman's Library). Coupled with plain poor translating, it made reading the text unbearably dry and boring. Don't buy this translation! You will not find original Tolstoy there! After this book was published for the first time by Katkov, Tolstoy wrote a letter to him, where he complained about the changes. I have read both versions and I can say: the difference is significant. The most spicy, candid and beautiful moments are just not there. I would recommend translations by Prof. Leo Wiener or Rosemary Edmonds, although I haven't read much of the latter. As long as it begins as "Childhood" and NOT "The History of My Childhood", it should be alright. This book is not as consistent and in-depth as Tolstoy's later works, but for a 24-year-old officer, who had just begun to express himself on paper, this is a really magnificent work, easy to read and full of emotions. This is why I am giving it five stars.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
A Hidden Gem for Lovers of Russian Literature
7 April 2008
Format:Paperback
Most people when they think of Tolstoy, War and Peace comes to mind. Others, Anna Karenina which is in large part due to Hollywood, the popular media and the numerous translations available over the years (Constance Garnet, Maud, etc..).
When people think of Nineteenth Century Russian Literature as whole, names like Dostoevsky, Pushkin and Chekhov come to mind. "Crime and Punishment", "Eugene Onegin" and "The Cherry Orchard" are works we might randomly associate with the novel, the narrative-poem and the plays of the great Russian masters.
Childhood, Boyhood, and Youth is that work which stands on the periphery, not only of Tolstoy's works but also of Russian literature in general. It feels Russian, the characters are Russians but the influences come from French literature (Rousseau) and Germany (Schiller, Goethe). There is a Bildungsroman element but I wouldn't want to label it a novel of development. There is also something more. Feeling, wonder, innocence, they too appear in the French and Germanic influences but there is also a great deal of sensation (a "novel of sensation"?). Reading this book, I could feel the narrator's home, I could feel his emotions. It is a work that explores the visceral aspects of being young, growing up and trying to find one's way in society.
Tolstoy's work often carry a great philosophical and moral weight. He was heavily influenced by Arthur Schopenhauer and his theories about the "will-to-live" and the endless cravings of "desire". Not only that, he was reading up on the works of the Shakers, their celibacy stance. The Kreuzer Sonata and The Devil are essentially works in which Tolstoy is maddened with lust and morality.
Here, you could say is the lighter Tolstoy, a Tolstoy of impressions, beauty, and tender emotions. There is no moralizing or foreboding, no fear of judgment, no murdering of wives. It is novel that looks forward to Proust in its dreamlike presentation of being young. While reading this book I felt like I disappeared into the child I once was and still am. A true hidden treasure and also the perfect example of how all Russian literature is not necessarily dark and murky.
When people think of Nineteenth Century Russian Literature as whole, names like Dostoevsky, Pushkin and Chekhov come to mind. "Crime and Punishment", "Eugene Onegin" and "The Cherry Orchard" are works we might randomly associate with the novel, the narrative-poem and the plays of the great Russian masters.
Childhood, Boyhood, and Youth is that work which stands on the periphery, not only of Tolstoy's works but also of Russian literature in general. It feels Russian, the characters are Russians but the influences come from French literature (Rousseau) and Germany (Schiller, Goethe). There is a Bildungsroman element but I wouldn't want to label it a novel of development. There is also something more. Feeling, wonder, innocence, they too appear in the French and Germanic influences but there is also a great deal of sensation (a "novel of sensation"?). Reading this book, I could feel the narrator's home, I could feel his emotions. It is a work that explores the visceral aspects of being young, growing up and trying to find one's way in society.
Tolstoy's work often carry a great philosophical and moral weight. He was heavily influenced by Arthur Schopenhauer and his theories about the "will-to-live" and the endless cravings of "desire". Not only that, he was reading up on the works of the Shakers, their celibacy stance. The Kreuzer Sonata and The Devil are essentially works in which Tolstoy is maddened with lust and morality.
Here, you could say is the lighter Tolstoy, a Tolstoy of impressions, beauty, and tender emotions. There is no moralizing or foreboding, no fear of judgment, no murdering of wives. It is novel that looks forward to Proust in its dreamlike presentation of being young. While reading this book I felt like I disappeared into the child I once was and still am. A true hidden treasure and also the perfect example of how all Russian literature is not necessarily dark and murky.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Promising Prose But Little Drama from Tolstoy in His Twenties
24 Aug 2007
Format:Hardcover
I have read most of Tolstoy's major work including his most well known short stories. This is an early work from 1852 to 1856 and it is considered to be semi-autobiographical. It is not up to the standards of his later works, although it is long and detailed and made up of three stories that flow together as one.
Tolstoy was born in 1828 and he was in his twenties when he wrote this early work. He his famous for detailed physical descriptions combined with emotional drama. For example, read that wonderul short story Master and Man that combines those two elements. The present work has the detailed descriptions but lacks the emotional appeal and lacks the great characters that we see in other works, i.e.: a crying youth because he is humiliated is hardly a great emotional experienece.
Tolstoy remains as one of the leading writers of novels. His impressive legacy includes three of four monumental works including War and Peace, Anna Karenina, and the novella The Death of Ivan Ilych. According to his own estimate, he has over 400 works - as he describes in one of his non-fiction works.
Tolstoy's writing can be divided into three phases: the early years up to 1860 to 1861, the mid-career years from approximately 1861 to 1890, and his final years when he turned to non-fiction polemics. His most important fiction was written in the middle period, and it started with the release of The Cossacks in 1863. That story contains emotional elements and descriptions similar to what we read in Anna Karenina. His writings before The Cossacks contains his famous detail but lacks the same level of drama and emotion.
The present work is a good example of his early work pre-1961. Tostoy follows a Gogol like approach to produce a lengthy and detailed account of a young man growing up. The narrative is about a young man living in rural Russia. He goes on to attend university in Moscow and he is the son of a landowner as was Tolstoy himself. The story covers the boy's experiences from around the age of ten to the age of twenty. The character is based on one of Tolstoy's childhood friends and includes other characters based on real people that he knew. The story is a work of fiction. Tolstoy's own father died when he was still young as did his mother who died before his father.
This is a very slow read. It took me a week on and off to get through 314 pages in small font. Readers should not confuse this work with his famous works that came in his mid-career. The prose is excellent, especially the description of the thunderstorm about one third of the way into the book, but the story lacks drama and charm. Considering the author and his complete body of work, this is just 4 stars among the stories by Tolstoy.
As a side note, this is a beautifully bound hardcover book.
Tolstoy was born in 1828 and he was in his twenties when he wrote this early work. He his famous for detailed physical descriptions combined with emotional drama. For example, read that wonderul short story Master and Man that combines those two elements. The present work has the detailed descriptions but lacks the emotional appeal and lacks the great characters that we see in other works, i.e.: a crying youth because he is humiliated is hardly a great emotional experienece.
Tolstoy remains as one of the leading writers of novels. His impressive legacy includes three of four monumental works including War and Peace, Anna Karenina, and the novella The Death of Ivan Ilych. According to his own estimate, he has over 400 works - as he describes in one of his non-fiction works.
Tolstoy's writing can be divided into three phases: the early years up to 1860 to 1861, the mid-career years from approximately 1861 to 1890, and his final years when he turned to non-fiction polemics. His most important fiction was written in the middle period, and it started with the release of The Cossacks in 1863. That story contains emotional elements and descriptions similar to what we read in Anna Karenina. His writings before The Cossacks contains his famous detail but lacks the same level of drama and emotion.
The present work is a good example of his early work pre-1961. Tostoy follows a Gogol like approach to produce a lengthy and detailed account of a young man growing up. The narrative is about a young man living in rural Russia. He goes on to attend university in Moscow and he is the son of a landowner as was Tolstoy himself. The story covers the boy's experiences from around the age of ten to the age of twenty. The character is based on one of Tolstoy's childhood friends and includes other characters based on real people that he knew. The story is a work of fiction. Tolstoy's own father died when he was still young as did his mother who died before his father.
This is a very slow read. It took me a week on and off to get through 314 pages in small font. Readers should not confuse this work with his famous works that came in his mid-career. The prose is excellent, especially the description of the thunderstorm about one third of the way into the book, but the story lacks drama and charm. Considering the author and his complete body of work, this is just 4 stars among the stories by Tolstoy.
As a side note, this is a beautifully bound hardcover book.
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