War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy [Annotated]
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Product Description
Independent
'Translators give their wits and craft selflessly in service of others' work; this is a triumph of fidelity and unpretentiousness'
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`reveals Tolstoy in his majestic scope and precision to this reader for the first time...ringing with mastery and truth'
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
33 of 33 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Enthralling,
By Carruthers (Gloucestershire) - See all my reviews
This review is from: War and Peace (Hardcover)
Having not read War and Peace before, and being fluent in neither Russian nor French, I am not qualified to compare and contrast this translation with other translations. But coming to this great novel for the first time I found this version to be an immensely readable book and it was with great sadness that I finished it. While others might concentrate on the pros and cons of this version against others, for those who have never read War and Peace before it is the story itself that is so fantastic. I was completely transported to Napoleonic times.
One comment on the translation itself though - in many places I found it mellifluous. 'Kapli kapali. Shyol tikhii govor. Loshadi zarzhali i podralis. Khrapel kto-to.' - 'Drops dripped. Quiet talk went on. Horses neighed and scuffed. Someone snored.' Fantastic. And as others have noted the hardback is a wonderfully tactile object. Well done Clays and thank you Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky.
293 of 301 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Give it a go...and keep on going!!,
By
This review is from: War and Peace (Penguin Classics) (Mass Market Paperback)
War and Peace is my favourite novel, bar none! It took me several attempts to read it from start to finish, but it more than rewards the effort. It is a work of understated genius, astute characterisation, and profound insight into what makes us human. Tolstoy's canvas is Russia at the beginning of the 19th century, and more partcularly the life experiences of those who lived before, during, and after the Napoleonic wars with Russia. Rather than inhibiting the appeal of the novel, this setting allows Tolstoy to explore the human condition through the highs and lows of his characters.
Rather than bore you with a plot synopsis or my fairly uninteresting insights, here are some encouragements for those who have an ambition to read War and Peace, or who have started but are flagging in the journey: 1. Don't be put off by the huge amount of characters introduced at the beginning of the novel. This is a little like entering a room full of strangers, and you can feel a little overwhelmed. Eventually, however, you will get to know a small group very intimately, and will be able to recognise them the further you read. A little like life really!! 2. Don't let the dimensions of the book put you off. Perhaps you should read sections (it is divided into four books and an epilogue, which might be a good serialisation). 3. Read other shorter books at the same time, just to remind yourself that you have the capacity to finish things you begin. 4. Go to forums and websites where others are engaged in reading it from start to finish. 5. Know that the further you get into War and Peace the better and more deep it becomes. It is a book which demands effort, but abundantly rewards it's reader. Tolstoy's opus literally changes the way you view the world. I trust that this is of some help to those who are either wavering or flagging over War and Peace...
62 of 66 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
What is War and Peace?,
This review is from: War and Peace (Oxford World's Classics) (Paperback)
Tolstoy offered his own answer to this question, in "Some Words About War And Peace," but his answer is not very illuminating. Let me try to answer the question in the simplest way possible:It is first and foremost the story of a handful of characters: the Rostovs, the Bolkonskys, Pierre. It is not a book about war or peace in the grand, overarching sense, but about people and how they cope with such times. Tolstoy's view was that there is no point in writing only about the general course of the war - it's the people that matter. But, unlike most other novelists, Tolstoy takes you into the lives of his characters by presenting their stories within a historical context presented with an extraordinary level of detail. From this, the popular misconception arises that War and Peace is the story of the Napoleonic Wars, as thought it were some kind of 19th Century Tom Clancy novel. It is not. As the book goes on and the ongoing war becomes more intense, a great deal of space is devoted to descriptions of the progress of the war and analysis of its causes and effects. It can seem as though Tolstoy has forgetten his characters and readers naturally become confused and wonder what the book is all about. But when that happens to you, persevere. It *is* worth it. At the end of the First Epilogue everything falls into place and the immense value of all that historical detail will become obvious through the way you empathise with the characters.
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