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challenging
dark
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It was so tedious to get through. The first half of the book is mostly just introductions that are kind of useless because they didn’t add anything to the story or come back into play later. I would have skimmed the hell out of it, except the only saving grace was the love stories between (what we find out so far into the book) our very main characters. It kind of seemed like it was just a rambling story that maybe Tolstoy told his friends and family bc they were bored and needed months of something to do, and so he would amble along and then forget what he had said earlier in the story but then remember and so he had to tie it all in somehow. And then he decided to write it all down. I’m not mad I read it, but I’m not happy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Violence, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, War, Injury/Injury detail
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
War and Peace is a feat of a novel, exploring themes of inner happiness, family, wealth, class and love during War-torn Russia. Tolstoy's understanding of humanity, of our failings and intricacies, are drawn with empathy and a deep understanding of human nature. Many of his scenes feel incredibly contemporary.
Whilst a lot of the time the war sections didn't grab me nearly as much as those set in the domestic environment, there was still parts to appreciate. Pierre's journey particular is the highlight, as we following his examinations of life. Natasha is perhaps the biggest disappointment, often reading as manic and unrealistic, but her friendships with her family, and in particular Princess Marya in the latter parts of the novel, allow us to see her deep capacity for love.
Tolstoy's writing is so specific and invites you into his world with a twinkle in his eye. I'm so glad I read this. Thank you, Dave Malloy.
Whilst a lot of the time the war sections didn't grab me nearly as much as those set in the domestic environment, there was still parts to appreciate. Pierre's journey particular is the highlight, as we following his examinations of life. Natasha is perhaps the biggest disappointment, often reading as manic and unrealistic, but her friendships with her family, and in particular Princess Marya in the latter parts of the novel, allow us to see her deep capacity for love.
Tolstoy's writing is so specific and invites you into his world with a twinkle in his eye. I'm so glad I read this. Thank you, Dave Malloy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Dementia, Grief, Death of parent, War, Classism
Moderate: Animal death, Confinement, Gun violence, Incest, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Suicide, Xenophobia, Blood, Kidnapping, Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Abortion, Pregnancy, Colonisation
challenging
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book could have (and in my opinion should have) been split into two separate writings: one being the fictional story itself, the other being a treatise titled On Power. The fictional story was entertaining. It's length would not necessarily have proven to be a deterrent for me. The philosophical and theoretical arguments on power were repetitive to the point of eye-glazing boredom. The book's second epilogue, twelve chapters, didn't mention the fictional story at all. While I don't normally advocate for abridged versions of an author's works, in this case, I would. Reading an abridged version, consisting of the fictional story only, would not only save several hours of reading time, but would possibly make the fictional story even stronger.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Medical content, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Dementia, Death of parent, Alcohol
Minor: Suicide attempt
challenging
informative
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book was a journey... Not going to lie, I found the start quite dull and confusing and I wanted to give up. While some of the the politics were interesting enough at times I found the pompous frills of the aristocracy (especially characters who don't seem all that interesting at the start and I don't have much reason to care about) frustrating and dull and I found myself wondering why anyone even enjoys this book. But I decided to give it a bit of a chance. And, well I guess I made it through?
I started enjoying it more when we got to the war parts (and while I did like the later peace parts more than the first one I kept enjoying the war parts more than those. Switching to an audiobook for the duller parts might also have played a role). I think that characters being less petty and frustrating played a large role in that. It did get better when the female characters started feeling less vapid and shallow than I felt they often came across in the earlier pages, something I picked up on after the first switch from more wary stuff back to a life of privilege. While there were still a lot of people to try keep track of the actual writing wasn't particularly difficult to read when I was actually interested in what was happening. I did find my interest slipping when things got less interesting to me though. I don't think it quite lives up to its reputation as the "best book ever" (I feel like it was a bit long at times) but I can see why some people love it so much. It was definitely an interesting insight into Russian culture and the attitudes of the time. Will I reread it? Probably no. But if you are interested in the time period and want to read this book, it does get better after the initial slog. Or at least it did for me.
I started enjoying it more when we got to the war parts (and while I did like the later peace parts more than the first one I kept enjoying the war parts more than those. Switching to an audiobook for the duller parts might also have played a role). I think that characters being less petty and frustrating played a large role in that. It did get better when the female characters started feeling less vapid and shallow than I felt they often came across in the earlier pages, something I picked up on after the first switch from more wary stuff back to a life of privilege. While there were still a lot of people to try keep track of the actual writing wasn't particularly difficult to read when I was actually interested in what was happening. I did find my interest slipping when things got less interesting to me though. I don't think it quite lives up to its reputation as the "best book ever" (I feel like it was a bit long at times) but I can see why some people love it so much. It was definitely an interesting insight into Russian culture and the attitudes of the time. Will I reread it? Probably no. But if you are interested in the time period and want to read this book, it does get better after the initial slog. Or at least it did for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Violence, Grief, War
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Misogyny, Suicide attempt, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Alcohol
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Ler War and Peace foi um desafio para mim, não só porque é um clássico bastante longo, mas também pela forma como foi escrito. A obra mostra o panorama da vida da alta sociedade russa durante os avanços e consequente guerras napoleônicas. O livro lança luz sobre a vida de alguns personagens chave, para a narrativa senão para a História mundial, ao longo dos anos de duração da campanha de Napoleão na Rússia. Os principais desses personagens são:
Pierre Bezukhov - O filho ilegítimo corpulento, desajeitado de um velho nobre russo. Pierre, educado no exterior, retorna à Rússia desajustado. Sua herança inesperada da grande fortuna de seu pai o torna socialmente desejável. Pierre é enredado pela caçadora de fortunas Helene Kuragina, cuja eventual traição o deixa deprimido e confuso, estimulando uma busca espiritual que abrange todo o romance. Pierre eventualmente se casa com Natasha Rostova.
Andrew Bolkonski - O filho inteligente, disciplinado e ambicioso do comandante militar aposentado Príncipe Bolkonski. Andrew é friamente analítico e resistente a questões emocionais. Solitário após a morte de sua esposa, Lise, com quem teve um filho, ele se apaixona por Natasha, mas não consegue perdoar a paixão momentânea dela por outro homem, Anatole. No leito de morte ele a perdoa. Sua morte deixa para trás seu filho com sua irmã Maria e gera uma forte amizade entre esta e Natasha.
Maria Bolkonskaya - A filha solitária, simples e sofredora do príncipe Bolkonski e irmã de Andrew. A princesa Maria cuida do pai, suportando o tratamento cruel com o perdão cristão. No final, Nicholas Rostov casa-se com Maria e salva-a de uma solidão infeliz.
Natasha Rostova - A filha viva, irreprimível e consequentemente mimada da família Rostov, que encanta a todos que conhece. Eu diria que a principal das personagens femininas. Natasha se apaixona por uma série de homens e então se compromete seriamente com Andrew, embora ela arruíne o relacionamento ao se envolver em um breve encontro com Anatole Kuragin. Eventualmente, Natasha se casa com Pierre e se torna uma matrona corpulenta e desleixada.
Nicholas Rostov - O impetuoso filho mais velho de Rostov, que se junta às forças russas em 1805 e passa grande parte do romance no front. Nicholas acumula dívidas de jogo que se tornam onerosas para sua família. No entanto, vemos seu compromisso com a família após a morte do pai, quando ele sustenta a mãe e a prima Sonya com seu parco salário, enquanto continua a pagar as dívidas da família. Nicholas eventualmente se casa com a herdeira Maria, salvando sua família da ruína financeira.
Como pontos negativos do livro destaco poucos: O primeiro é a forma como Tolstoi introduziu muitos personagens relevantes, mas apesar de quão longo o livro é, sua escrita não me fez me apegar a nenhum. Mesmo os personagens principais não são realmente aprofundados emocionalmente. Outros inúmeros personagens secundários para história são apresentados, passamos um tempo razoável com eles nos levando a crer que estes serão importantes para a narrativa, porém eles são deixados para trás e são pouco ou nada mencionados na segunda metade do livro; O segundo ponto fraco é um gosto pessoal meu e contradiz um pouco minha primeira reclamação. Eu acredito que o texto foca demais Natasha Rostova. Ela é por muito do livro voluntariosa e mimada e sua narrativa parece supérflua diante da realidade da guerra. Suas paixonites, sua angustia diante de ter de esperar para casar com Andrew no lugar de casar imediatamente como gostaria, sua traição do mesmo por uma paixão temporária. Diante do contexto maior da obra sua narrativa parece tola e enervante; Meu terceiro ponto fraco também é uma questão de gatilhos pessoais meus, o livro figura crueldade contra animais e morte de animais. Não gosto disso apesar de compreender que essa era a realidade daquele tempo e contexto histórico.
Como ponto positivo principal do livro cito as reflexões que Tolstoy faz em alguns capítulos ao longo do livro e em especial no segundo epilogo. O autor fala do enigma da história no abstrato e filosófico Segundo Epílogo, refletindo sobre o poder humano. O poder, que ele define como a vontade coletiva do povo transferida para um governante, é o único motor identificável que impulsiona a história. Mas esse poder é impossível de definir, por isso o mistério da história é insolúvel. É impossível explicar completamente porque as coisas aconteceram como aconteceram, pois, segundo o autor, líderes não tomam outra decisão senão aquela imposta a eles pelas circunstâncias, e essas circunstâncias são estabelecidas por uma infinidade de outras circunstâncias advindas do movimento do povo. O enigma da mudança histórica implica a questão teológica sobre o livre arbítrio e até que ponto qualquer indivíduo é verdadeiramente livre nas suas ações, quaisquer que sejam as suas ilusões de liberdade. Segundo o narrador, é tão impossível imaginar a liberdade total quanto imaginar o determinismo total. Ao final, o autor expõe a ideia de que devemos necessariamente depender de um poder do qual não temos consciência. Esta ideia equivale ao reconhecimento de que, embora o nosso sentido de liberdade seja indispensável, também o é a nossa compreensão reprimida de que fazemos parte de algo maior do que nós mesmos, uma força que move as nossas vidas para a frente. A narrativa das vidas dos personagens de War and Peace não foram particularmente interessantes para mim, mas os capítulos com as reflexões de Tolstoy sobre guerra, poder, História, livre arbítrio entre outros temas abstratos e filosóficos elevaram a nota do livro para mim, dou 3.75 estrelas.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Emotional abuse, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Grief, Death of parent, War, Classism
Moderate: Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Slavery, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Racism, Dementia
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Child death, Death, Gun violence, Infidelity, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, War, Injury/Injury detail