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War and Peace (Modern Library Classics) | 
 enlarge | Author: Leo Tolstoy
Creators: A.n. Wilson, Constance Garnett
Publisher: Modern Library
Category: Book
List Price: $13.95
Buy Used: $6.23
You Save: $7.72 (55%)
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Rating:  38 reviews
Sales Rank: 52722
Media: Paperback
Pages: 1424
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2.2
Dimensions (in): 8.1 x 5.3 x 2.3
ISBN: 0375760644
Dewey Decimal Number: 891.733
EAN: 9780375760648
ASIN: 0375760644
Publication Date: July 9, 2002
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Expedited shipping is not available for this item. Items are mailed via USPS media mail within 2 business days and should arrive 4-14 business days later.
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Product Description
Often called the greatest novel ever written, War and Peace is at once an epic of the Napoleonic Wars, a philosophical study, and a celebration of the Russian spirit. Tolstoy’s genius is seen clearly in the multitude of characters in this massive chronicle—all of them fully realized and equally memorable. Out of this complex narrative emerges a profound examination of the individual’s place in the historical process, one that makes it clear why Thomas Mann praised Tolstoy for his Homeric powers and placed War and Peace in the same category as the Iliad: “To read him . . . is to find one’s way home . . . to everything within us that is fundamental and sane.”
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| Customer Reviews: Read 33 more reviews...
 Epic proportions August 6, 2004
FrKurt Messick (Bloomington, IN USA)
87 out of 100 found this review helpful
How does one do justice to a work as monumental and vast as Tolstoy's 'War and Peace' in the short space this review grants? Indeed, I toyed with the idea of trying to encapsulate this epic work in 100 words, but failed. I do know of one review of 'War and Peace' that was even shorter; it read:
Napoleon invaded.
It snowed.
Napolean failed.
Russia won.
Perhaps that does encapsulate it. Tolstoy would have probably respected such as description, for, as verbose as he and other Russia novelists seemed to be (given a purely page-count analysis), he appreciated brevity and essentialism in the description.
This holds true for 'War and Peace'. I was amazed at the lack of what one might hold to be extraneous detailing in the text -- I would have expected long, drawn out and tedious renderings of situations, emotions or events, but such is not the case.
In Tolstoy's following of the Rostovs (poor country gentry) and the Bolkonskis (higher society), and a hero Pierre Bezuhkov, he illustrates basic truths in the way life is lived, and the way it ought to be lived. Tolstoy was a moralist, but no mystic in his writing (unusually so, given his general mystical sentiments in life). He felt it absolutely essential that the novelist should tell the truth, and mystical digressions lead away from that. His characters grow as we watch, and he recounts details that are important (such as Natasha and her doll as a child, and then later Natasha going to church -- these are two ages of the same person, to be sure, but not a simple updating of the character, as if an actress wearing a different costume).
Each circumstance, the day-to-day conversations and events, the family interactions, their dealing with life and success and death and defeat, all have an uncanny ring of truth about them. The family resemblance of characters leap off the page: the Rostovs all have a common element (beyond the basic social class attributes), and likewise there is and intangible similarity between Prince Andrei and his father.
'War and Peace' has been described as the Illiad and the Odyssey of the Russian people, with just cause. This is a work that speaks to the meaning and hope of life. His realism forced him to strip away much of the glorification of war and show the realities. Yet Tolstoy presents the events of 1812 as a moral crusade, and that the Russians won against the Napoleonic onslaught because of their adherence to simple, good and true virtues (as much as they relied on the snow to come to their defence). Even the upper classes, the urbane, wealthy and sophisticated Russians in 'War and Peace' have an underlying simplicity (contrasting to the French, and other foreigners', complexity and slyness) that gives them the moral upper hand.
One almost hears the echo of 'Simple Gifts' in this Russian epic:
Tis a gift to be simple...
Yet this is not a stupid or ignorant simplicity. It is a wise state of being. One could imagine Tolstoy being at home with the philosophies of Emerson and Thoreau, and while he might sympathise with Thomas Carlyle in moral and political terms, he would be opposed to his historical hero-worshipful stance, preferring to think of the collective of humanity as the true agent and mover in history.
'War and Peace' is often held up as an example of a long book that nobody can read. This is rubbish. I have three editions, each of which is fewer than 1500 pages (yes, I know that is quite a lot), fewer pages than the Bible, fewer pages than some anthologies of modern novelists. It is long, there is no denying that. But it can be read, and I contend, given the right translation, one might become so enthralled that one might wish it were longer. The Modern Library Edition is just such a translation.
Best reading edition in print February 12, 2003
Brad Bigelow (APO, AE United States)
50 out of 56 found this review helpful
Yes, "War and Peace" is one of the great novels of all time, but it's also one you'll be spending a month or more with when you finally read it, and I enthusiastically recommend this edition when you do. The type is clear, the paper thin but still opaque, and the binding strong but flexible and resilient. I own two other editions, but bought this one just because I found it so readable.
The Garnett Translation is World Class March 26, 2006
P. Costello (New York, NY United States)
37 out of 39 found this review helpful
Since everyone already knows that this is the greatest novel ever written, I thought I would just comment on the edition and translation. I strongly recommend the Modern Library version translated by Constance Garnett. Ms. Garnett has received flack because her translations are deemed (by some) to be "outdated" and "stuffy." Nonsense. First of all, there is a reason why after over 100 years Garnett's translations are still ubiquitous. It is because they are great translations, rendering Russian works of literature into English language classics in their own right. Second, the fact that a translation might be "outdated" is not a valid criticism. Would you "update" Jane Austen to make it more "readable" to a modern audience? Of course not. The fact is, Garnett's translations are the closest in time to the original Russian works, and therefore probably the most accurate to the tone of the originals. The Garnett translation of War and Peace simply jumped off the page and pulled me into this novel from the first page on. I could not put it down, and the 1400 pages just flew by. I spent hours comparing this translation to Maude, Dunnigan, and Edmonds, and they just didn't seem to have the force and emotion of the Garnett. There is a new translation now by someone named Anthony Briggs who claims to render the novel into more contemporary English. But my question is -- WHAT IS THE POINT?? Of course, you can't go wrong no matter which translation, because you can't mess up Tolstoy, but I just wanted to throw in a very strong recommendation for the Garnett.
Finally, the Modern Library paperback version is a great high quality paperback with clear white opaque pages and nice typesetting, unlike most of the other paperback versions out there.
Novel or Epic? June 16, 2004
Jennifer R. Gremillion (Texas)
18 out of 21 found this review helpful
Can't afford to travel to Russia to explore historic St.Petersburg, Moscow, and the beautiful rural villages? Then give War and Peace a try. It took me a couple of weeks to read this. I chose to start it in the dead of winter and found that the novel transported me delightfully in time and place from the warmth of my hearthside recliner. I had been reading quite a bit about the Napoloenic era so this novel was a very nice twist in perspective from the French to the Russian. Tolstoy was at his best when writing about war. His writing can be very tragic, but isn't steeped in as much Romanticism as the French writers of the time. I enjoyed reading Tolstoy's fervent religious views. My only complaint is that the book lacked a cohesive plot, protaganist and that the ending was trite. Don't worry about the length or the huge cast of characters as you read. You will get accustomed to all of the many characters and you will begin to see the book as an old friend waiting to be read daily. The social exploits of the characters are vividly interesting and intriguing. I feel like I have been to Russian drawing rooms, wars and theatre. Although I prefer War and Peace to Anna Karennina, I would recommend Anna to anyone who wants a bit more philosophy and less history from Tolstoy. It may also behoove the reader to purchase a book or two that explains the historical info regarding Napoleon's march into and out of Russia as a companion to the reading of War and Peace. I used one with biographies of French and Russian generals as well as battle maps and understood the war scenes much clearer.
 Consider carefully before you take this on... December 30, 2005
Paula Gayle (USA)
14 out of 25 found this review helpful
I decided to read W&P because I had heard that it is hailed by many to be "The Best Novel Ever." I'm making my way through those books considered "classics" and normally I read them with gusto.
This was different. I made it all the way through it, but only through determination and perseverance. To those who ask me how I read the whole thing, I reply, "One page at a time."
I found the book far too complicated and far too verbose to keep track of all the characters and their relationships. Some editions have a guide included that you can use as a bookmark so it's right there when you need to remember who's who and where they fit in. The guide also has maps so you can get an idea of where the events are taking place. I would have been lost without it, and heartily recommend you not be either. Another recommendation would be to keep a journal as you read along, something you can refer back to so you don't get overwhelmed.
I could go on, but I guess I could sum things up by saying, "You've been warned."
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