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4.09 AVERAGE
4.09 AVERAGE
Highly recommend reading with others and with plenty of time to savor. Simon Haisell’s yearlong read along on his Footnotes and Tangents Substack provided that for me this year and my experience of W&P was better for it.
In his notes at the end of this book, Tolstoy says that it is not a novel. I partly agree. It’s a perfectly good novel with a boring, repetitive theory of history and philosophy infecting it. As the book goes on, the amount of engaging story in comparison to tedious treatise decreases, until the entirely unnecessary 2nd epilogue which just endlessly repeats the very small point the author has made frequently throughout the book. I wish he’d just said: “history is decided by God and has nothing to do with the plans or actions of people in leadership positions” at the start, and then taken it as read that readers had understood and accepted that as his position which needed no repeating.
Apart from that, this is an interesting, engaging book, with fairly rounded and almost believable, sympathetic characters, though it rather peters out towards the end. Some of the action is rather over-dramatic, but that’s fun. There are good cliff-hangers and plot twists. There are some moments which are beautifully described, such as Nicholas’ first experience of battle. Overall it’s not particularly literary, though. It has the appeal of a soap opera, which is aided by its length. It covers just over a decade in the lives of a few key families and their friends, so it’s not quite a saga. The descriptions of Russian life in the early 1800s, peasant as well as nobility, are informative.
Overall, it’s a better-than-average, but not exceptional, narrative, with a tendency to tedious rambling every so often.
Apart from that, this is an interesting, engaging book, with fairly rounded and almost believable, sympathetic characters, though it rather peters out towards the end. Some of the action is rather over-dramatic, but that’s fun. There are good cliff-hangers and plot twists. There are some moments which are beautifully described, such as Nicholas’ first experience of battle. Overall it’s not particularly literary, though. It has the appeal of a soap opera, which is aided by its length. It covers just over a decade in the lives of a few key families and their friends, so it’s not quite a saga. The descriptions of Russian life in the early 1800s, peasant as well as nobility, are informative.
Overall, it’s a better-than-average, but not exceptional, narrative, with a tendency to tedious rambling every so often.
Gonna try out my attempt at rating that's not limited by a shitty five star system.
Genre: Classic, Russian Literature
Characterization 5 stars - Tolstoy excels at making rich characters that are so very very human in their inconstancy. You know everyone in this book. You've met them before, or you see them so clearly in your minds eye you might as well.
Prose 3 stars - NOT tolstoy's strong suit. When you first pick it up you'll be like "uhh dude wtf"
Description 5 stars - tolstoy is BRILLIANT at setting a scene, particularly outdoor descriptions, and particularly with an eye to light, shadow, and dampness. I know that sounds weird, but you will get the most clear picture in your head of the scenes he describes, particularly ones set in outdoors (i.e. mainly war scenes)
In addition, the things Tolstoy focuses on? Those things are what makes this novel great. The depiction of wartime execution, of the form and character of an army, of a soldier staring up into the sky with a grievous wound - it's these things that sit with you.
Plot 4 stars - i mean it's war and it's peace, duh. It's learning about another culture and a war and Tolstoy's absolute disdain of napoleon. it's following a cast of characters, all of whom you love, an ensemble that makes such boneheaded choices that sometimes you want to stab them in the eye, yet makes beautiful choices the next moment, a cast that moves through time and 1400 pages.
Genre: Classic, Russian Literature
Characterization 5 stars - Tolstoy excels at making rich characters that are so very very human in their inconstancy. You know everyone in this book. You've met them before, or you see them so clearly in your minds eye you might as well.
Prose 3 stars - NOT tolstoy's strong suit. When you first pick it up you'll be like "uhh dude wtf"
Description 5 stars - tolstoy is BRILLIANT at setting a scene, particularly outdoor descriptions, and particularly with an eye to light, shadow, and dampness. I know that sounds weird, but you will get the most clear picture in your head of the scenes he describes, particularly ones set in outdoors (i.e. mainly war scenes)
In addition, the things Tolstoy focuses on? Those things are what makes this novel great. The depiction of wartime execution, of the form and character of an army, of a soldier staring up into the sky with a grievous wound - it's these things that sit with you.
Plot 4 stars - i mean it's war and it's peace, duh. It's learning about another culture and a war and Tolstoy's absolute disdain of napoleon. it's following a cast of characters, all of whom you love, an ensemble that makes such boneheaded choices that sometimes you want to stab them in the eye, yet makes beautiful choices the next moment, a cast that moves through time and 1400 pages.
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Surprise! I've been reading War and Peace. Although it wasn't as torturous as I initially expected. The novel is actually incredibly enjoyable and it took everything in my power to set it down at night to get decent sleep.
It's done. The behemoth has been conquered. And it was a truly legendary read! This was my first Tolstoy book, and it was mind-blowingly good. It's about everything that it means to be human. To live, to love, to win, to lose. What it means to have a broken-heart. The trauma of battle. The glory of freedom. The value and sanctity of times of peace. There's humor, romance, action, and tragedy within these pages, and Tolstoy was way ahead of his time in capturing the psychology of his characters. So why 4 stars? How dare I give the greatest novel of all time less than a perfect 5? To be honest, I have a few reasons for the lower rating.
#1 Toward the end of the book, each new section of chapter brings the story to a screeching halt as the author abandons his characters and launches into chapters-long lectures expounding his philosophies on history and historians. In my opinion, these chapters are extremely skipable and add little to the story.
#2 The beginning of the book is confusing, and I was not really sure until about page 200 which characters I needed to care about and follow. Honestly, it's a messy start to things, with about 15 characters introduced and only 4 of them actually important to the story. Pro tip for those trying to tackle this book - the only characters in the first few chapters that you really need to pay attention to are Pierre, Andrey, Natasha, and Nikolay. And somewhat pay attention to Prince Vassily and Helene. Everyone else in those early scenes are fairly minor characters whom you can spend a little less energy on.
#3 Tolstoy does NOT stick the ending. Rather than ending with the story and wrapping up the storyline of the main characters, he chooses to finish his masterpiece with 12 MORE CHAPTERS about his philosophy of history. In other words, what should have concluded with grace and interest ends with a preachy thud. So aggravating! I found it interesting that Tolstoy - at least in this novel - is bad at beginning the story AND ending the story, but everything in the middle is fantastic, which is odd since most authors seem to struggle with the middle.
But these issues are not deal-breakers (for me, at least.) This was a massively incredible read that I am so grateful to have experienced. In fact, now that I know more about the story and which sectioms are skipable, I am excited to one day read this novel again, and I anticipate that it will be even more enjoyable the second time around.
A few more things I should mention. I loved this particular translation by Anthony Briggs. I did occasionally compare it to the Maude translation, which is considered the standard English one, and I do prefer the Briggs in most instances. For the most part, it is much more readable for modern readers (other than a few head-scratching uses of some extremely archaic words) and I highly recommend it. Especially fantastic is the fact that the majority of the French passages are translated, freeing up the reader from the necessity of constantly consultanting footnotes.
Also, for anyone interested in reading this, I have a few tips.
1. As mentioned earlier, Try not to get too overwhelmed by the early chapters. Stick with focusing on the main characters (Pierre, Andrey, Natasha, and eventually Marya) and you'll be fine.
2. Sometimes character names can be confusing because at times they're called by their normal name, and then other times an extra title is added, depending on the social situation, so just be prepared for that. In other words, Andrey and Prince Andrey are not 2 separate characters - they are one in the same.
3. Speaking of titles, Prince and Princess doesn't carry quite the same weight as it does in Western Euporean culture, since there are no Kings in Russia at this time. The country is ruled by a tsar rather than a king, and princes and princesses are more like dukes and duchesses. In some ways, I wish translations would call these characters Duke and Duchess instead since that would make more sense.
4. Toward the end of the book, the author gets caught up in his philosophy of historical analysis. If that sort of topic is appealing to you, by all means, read it and thrill at Tolstoy's academic treatise. But, if you're like me, and care more about characters and story than philosophy and military tactics, those sorts of chapters (including the final 12) you can skim and/or skip without missing anything crucial.
5. I highly recommend reading this with an e-reader. It makes everything so much easier. You can search up characters quickly if you forget who so one is, translate any short French phrases that you're curious about, and search up the definitions of any archaic words. I tried reading a paper copy and also an audiobook, and found the e-book method to be vastly superior.
In summation, it's a challenging yet rewarding read - especially if you go into it with some tactics. When it's good, it's incredible, and the amazing parts vastly outweigh the pedantic bits. Once you get into it and aquaint yourself with the main characters, the prose itself is actually fairly easy to read and compelling. Good luck!
#1 Toward the end of the book, each new section of chapter brings the story to a screeching halt as the author abandons his characters and launches into chapters-long lectures expounding his philosophies on history and historians. In my opinion, these chapters are extremely skipable and add little to the story.
#2 The beginning of the book is confusing, and I was not really sure until about page 200 which characters I needed to care about and follow. Honestly, it's a messy start to things, with about 15 characters introduced and only 4 of them actually important to the story. Pro tip for those trying to tackle this book - the only characters in the first few chapters that you really need to pay attention to are Pierre, Andrey, Natasha, and Nikolay. And somewhat pay attention to Prince Vassily and Helene. Everyone else in those early scenes are fairly minor characters whom you can spend a little less energy on.
#3 Tolstoy does NOT stick the ending. Rather than ending with the story and wrapping up the storyline of the main characters, he chooses to finish his masterpiece with 12 MORE CHAPTERS about his philosophy of history. In other words, what should have concluded with grace and interest ends with a preachy thud. So aggravating! I found it interesting that Tolstoy - at least in this novel - is bad at beginning the story AND ending the story, but everything in the middle is fantastic, which is odd since most authors seem to struggle with the middle.
But these issues are not deal-breakers (for me, at least.) This was a massively incredible read that I am so grateful to have experienced. In fact, now that I know more about the story and which sectioms are skipable, I am excited to one day read this novel again, and I anticipate that it will be even more enjoyable the second time around.
A few more things I should mention. I loved this particular translation by Anthony Briggs. I did occasionally compare it to the Maude translation, which is considered the standard English one, and I do prefer the Briggs in most instances. For the most part, it is much more readable for modern readers (other than a few head-scratching uses of some extremely archaic words) and I highly recommend it. Especially fantastic is the fact that the majority of the French passages are translated, freeing up the reader from the necessity of constantly consultanting footnotes.
Also, for anyone interested in reading this, I have a few tips.
1. As mentioned earlier, Try not to get too overwhelmed by the early chapters. Stick with focusing on the main characters (Pierre, Andrey, Natasha, and eventually Marya) and you'll be fine.
2. Sometimes character names can be confusing because at times they're called by their normal name, and then other times an extra title is added, depending on the social situation, so just be prepared for that. In other words, Andrey and Prince Andrey are not 2 separate characters - they are one in the same.
3. Speaking of titles, Prince and Princess doesn't carry quite the same weight as it does in Western Euporean culture, since there are no Kings in Russia at this time. The country is ruled by a tsar rather than a king, and princes and princesses are more like dukes and duchesses. In some ways, I wish translations would call these characters Duke and Duchess instead since that would make more sense.
4. Toward the end of the book, the author gets caught up in his philosophy of historical analysis. If that sort of topic is appealing to you, by all means, read it and thrill at Tolstoy's academic treatise. But, if you're like me, and care more about characters and story than philosophy and military tactics, those sorts of chapters (including the final 12) you can skim and/or skip without missing anything crucial.
5. I highly recommend reading this with an e-reader. It makes everything so much easier. You can search up characters quickly if you forget who so one is, translate any short French phrases that you're curious about, and search up the definitions of any archaic words. I tried reading a paper copy and also an audiobook, and found the e-book method to be vastly superior.
In summation, it's a challenging yet rewarding read - especially if you go into it with some tactics. When it's good, it's incredible, and the amazing parts vastly outweigh the pedantic bits. Once you get into it and aquaint yourself with the main characters, the prose itself is actually fairly easy to read and compelling. Good luck!
emotional
informative
slow-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated