Despite the various locations, the use of several languages, a host of unfamiliar names and titles, war and peace is rather easy to follow. Dec 02, 2008 1296 pages 618 x 914 isbn 9781400079988. The rhythm of the epic novel is eerily suited to life in lockdown. Count leo tolstoy 18281910 was born in central russia. Again, the page number will vary from edition to edition due to different sized. See important quotations explained at a society party in st. And if youve already read war and peace, or dont have any interest in a 1,200page historical treatise masquerading as an aristocratic romance novel whats wrongwith you. Readers across the world are finding solace in war and peace. This book was written by lee tolstoy and contains 587,287 words. Greater than a historical chronicle, war and peace is an affirmation of life. Pevear and volokhonskys new translation gives us new access to the spirit and order of the book. I knew little about the time period, the war or the culture in russia at this tkime but tolstoy masterfully draws the reader into the world. The standard russian text of war and peace is divided into four books comprising fifteen parts and an epilogue in two parts.
Her hardback copy of leo tolstoys 1,200page saga bristles with coloured. This book was written by leo tolstoy and was first published in 1869. Pdf war and peace book by leo tolstoy free download. War and peace is a novel by the russian author leo tolstoy, published serially, then in its. Compiling a list of longest novels yields different results depending on whether pages, words or characters are counted. The 587,287 words in war and peace end up being 1,215 pages. I have not read war and peace, and i am so unacquainted with the story that i. War and peace broadly focuses on napoleons invasion of russia in 1812. At over 1400 pages long, this book may seem daunting but i urge anyone to read it, and like me, you may find it the one of the most rewarding book you will ever read. Many people find the first 100 pages dauntingly full of characters, and only then does it seem to smooth out and become lucid.
The novel was translated almost immediately after publication into many other. War and peace is primarily concerned with the histories of five aristocratic familiesparticularly the bezukhovs, the bolkonskys, and the rostovsthe members of which are portrayed against a vivid background of russian social life during the war against napoleon 180514. Conquering this everest was the test of whether you were a manreader. In war and peace, tolstoy entwines grand themes conflict and love, birth and. Length of a book is typically associated with its sizespecifically page countleading many to assume the largest and thickest book equates to its length.
The main characters of this classics, fiction story are napoleon bonaparte, pierre bezukhov. It contains 3,958 pages in four volumes and took 10 years to complete. There are none of the leaps and flashbacks that many modern novelists go in for. Roughly the first half is concerned strictly with the fictional characters, whereas the latter parts, as well as the second part of the epilogue, increasingly consist of essays about the nature of war, power, history, and historiography. The first edition of the novel was published in 1868, and was written by leo tolstoy. Front page of war and peace, first edition, 1869 russian. At 1400plus pages, war and peace can seem daunting. But whatever we call it, war and peace is an astonishing worka book that incorporates historical characters, vivid battle scenes, several love stories, shrewd glimpses of everyday life, an examination of western ideas and the russian soul, and a disquisition on the nature of history itself, among other things. Petersburg in 1805, anna pavlovna scherer speaks to her old friend prince vasili kuragin about the threat napoleon. The theme of war, however, is subordinate to the story of family existence, which involves tolstoys optimistic belief. Before turning the last page of this herculean novel, which had lain neglected on my bookshelf for. The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 92 pages and is available in paperback format. War and peace is a perfect book to read together for the duration of our necessary isolation. Word count is a direct way to measure the length of a novel in a manner unaffected by variations of format and page.