War and Peace
by Leo Tolstoy
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Book Reviews of War and Peace
Book Review: How to Read War and Peace, and Enjoy It Completely
Summary: 5 Stars
War and Peace is, without question, the greatest historical novel ever written.
However, if you carry a copy of War and Peace with you anywhere, you will be subjected to ridicule of many varieties. This, of course, says more about the critics than the reader. It tells us first that most people have largely lived their lives deprived of reading one of the most "need to read" books in Western literature.
The book and an understanding of it are essential for a classically liberal and comprehensive education in Western civilization. No other single book so completely expresses the essence of a critical age in history than War and Peace. As such, the central reason to read it is that it is an efficient window into who we are and how we got here.
The customary joking and ridicule also tells us that many people have been forced to read War and Peace in school, but never understood or appreciated it. That is a very sad state of affairs. It implies a kind of abuse that comes from forcing any good thing on someone just because it is deemed good for them and before they have a chance to understand and benefit from it.
I guess what I am saying is that this is not a book for the young or anyone else, unless the reader is prepared and coached along the way. The only way, indeed, a youthful reader can get the lessons of War and Peace is through extensive preparation and contextual education. War and Peace requires a whole course of background to be fully revealing and illuminating.
The purpose of my review of War and Peace is not to praise it or to evaluate its literary achievements. I am simply not an expert in a position to do that.
My purpose is to draw on my experience with the book and to provide prospective readers of all ages and backgrounds with an efficient but penetrating guide that will make the journey through the pages of the book come to life and swell with enjoyment and comprehension.
For now the review will have to be a work in progress. But in the end, I promise to provide a comprehensive plan of syntopical reading complete with travel suggestions that cement the standing of the book and equip the reader with the ability to disarm any critic and, more importantly, enjoy a life of interesting cocktail conversations upon completion of this great work.
In addition to this review, I recommend that anyone getting ready to mount the challenge of reading War and Peace can and should refer to the reading lists I separately provide on the Age of Napoleon and on the reading of War and Peace, as well as travel to and enjoyment of Paris, Moscow and St. Petersburg.
Book Review: An Epic in Prose or a Great Novel? It Is of Epic Proportions
Summary: 5 Stars
Count Lev Nikolaevich (1828-1910), more widely known abroad as Leo Tolstoy, is recognized as one the greatest novelist in the modern era. War and Peace is a superb piece of literature that most serious readers should read at least once. Many read it a few times. The fictional story is never dull. The non-fiction parts seem a bit strange and the reader can skip those parts. Once the reader gets past the first few pages, the reading is relatively simple and compelling. There are not too many characters, and it contains excellent prose that one might associate with Tolstoy's writing. It is only the length that discourages the reader.
This was a seven day read, including two days of intensive reading covering about 300 pages per day. That is about the same as a complete regular novel such as "Saturday" which is 300 pages. It is not for the faint of heart.
War and Peace is a bit of an odd novel being so long. Tolstoy goes beyond a simple novel as Anna Karenina or The Cossacks. He tells a historical tale plus he injects approximately 100 pages of his own non-fiction comments about society and war. Tolstoy's non-fiction comments ruin the book to a degree. Instead of the best novel ever written, Tolstoy's political ideas - which the reader can skip - tend to tarnish the book as a piece of literature. One feels that he should have been able to integrate his ideas into the actions of the characters rather than giving the reader long lectures on history and politics in the middle and at the end of a wonderful story (as Dostoevsky integrates his ideas on religion and morality into the dialogue). Otherwise, it is probably one of the best novels ever written.
I like Pevear and Volokhonsky's work and have bought and read three of their other works. All the translations, such as Oxford (Maude) and Modern Library Classics (Garnett), are good and very similar in overall quality. For example, turn to the beginning at the start of section 11. The present book uses Roman numerals while Maude uses simple numbers. What other differences are there? The present book says two people "cherish" their friendship while Maude says they "value" their friendship. Not much different. Going on, the two turn to talk to each other in Maude while in the present book one speaker pulls up their chair. One would have to know Russian and consult the original text to know if the "chair" is more accurate. So, overall one gets the same general feeling about the story and novel by reading any of the translations. But, the present book seems to give the reader more details.
Great read: 5 stars if you have the fortitude.
Book Review: The Best Ever
Summary: 5 Stars
This is not the first time that I have read War and Peace. And the previous times have been under far better circumstances. Yet this time is remarkable. This translation is so much better, so much richer, yet easier to read. I have flown through a book that is famous for being a really tough slog. And concluded that it should never have been that hard.
War and Peace is arguably the greatest of all works of liturature. Yet it is one that has never really fit into any particular genre. Is it a novel? Yes, but few novels stop at times for an essay on the author's view of history. (and end with a longer essay on both history and human nature) Is it a war story? I once read a collection of good war fiction which actually contained an excerpt from War and Peace- in fact most of Book 2 [Prince Bagration's holding action in Austria after the disaster at Ulm]: It was an excellent read by itself. But large portions of the book deal with people going about trying to get ahead in life far from any battlefield and largely outside of the military. In the final analysis War and Peace is not about history or war- it is about people living and dying, which just happens to be the ultimate stuff that history is made of- and the ultimate stuff of literature as well. Which is why everyone should read War and Peace: It is unique in its ability to bestow real perspective when it comes to looking at the events which constantly bombard us from every television screen.
So be very grateful that you now have a translation that is actually quite readable. Previous ones were simply clunkers. It was worth the slog to obtain the life lessons inside this work, but what a pain. And in truth the previous ones could be quite enjoyabe at times, at least in parts. But this translation is simply so much better. Not just because it seems easier but I felt like I was getting more of the actual texture of Tolstoy's writing. Of course, to fully get the full texture I would have to master Russian- both the language and the culture. But few of us have that luxury- certainly I do not. Which is why I am ever so grateful for this splendid translation.
If there is one point where the more negative reviewers have a legitimate complaint it is in the failure to also translate the French language passages as well as the English (they are translated- but as footnotes). Would it not have been better to translate them but use a different font to indicate that the characters were speaking French rather than Russian? It was somewhat disconcerting at times, and hurt the flow of the story. But this is a minor quibble.
Book Review: 5 stars for War & Peace, 2 stars for the translation
Summary: 5 Stars
Critics are praising this new edition of War and Peace as the greatest English translation to date (see, for example, New York Review of Books, Washington Post etc.).
I respectfully disagree.
Other Amazon reviewers, who have more common sense than the professional critics I've read, have pointed out the difficulty in reading the English translations from the French, which are deposited in small print at the bottom of each page. They are right. Because nearly 20% of the novel is in French, be prepared for an extremely disruptive reading experience switching back and forth from the text to the footnotes.
Basically, readers are forced to the footnotes simply so that the translators can say that they maintained authenticity to Tolstoy's original by inclusion of the French in the text. But the translators have ignored the fact that Tolstoy's novel was written for people who could read Russian and French! How many people who buy an English edition of War & Peace today also read French?
The location of the translations from the French is not the only problem. Tolstoy's often gnarly sentence structure is also maintained - what made sense in 19th century Russian does not necessarily make sense in 21st century English. Now every translator's challenge is to be as faithful as possible to the original vernacular while rendering the work being translated into a comprehensible form. In this case, I cannot speak to the translators' faithfulness to the original because I don't read Russian, but I can say that I had difficulty understanding many sentences which I found myself having to read two or more times.
My advice to first time readers of War and Peace is to buy the Penguin edition which was very capably translated by Rosemary Edmonds. There are many people who swear by the Garnett translation (Modern Library), however, I find it somewhat dated. There are many turns of phrase that seem a little archaic and the whole approach seems a bit cold compared to Edmonds. I also found that the characters seem much more alive and warm-hearted in Edmonds compared to Garnett - word choices and sentence structure are crucial in this respect.
In summary, every serious reader should take on War and Peace, but don't start with this new translation.
Book Review: A Terrible Translation
Summary: 2 Stars
I am sorry, but this translation is unreadable. I waited two years to read War and Peace, knowing this translation was in the works. I bought it as soon as it came out and first read the introduction, which was superb. Then I started the book itself - struggling through the small-type footnotes to read the French, trying to move back and forth and still maintain the flow of the narrative. Impossible. (Tolstoy wrote for a Russian biligual readership, but most English readers today require it to be translated, and not in footnotes.) But the worst was the English prose itself. After struggling with almost every sentence, trying to understand its meaning, I read about four chapters before deciding this was torture. It was stilted - impossible to speak - and the dialogue was especially unnatural. I theorized that the problem was in the translators' working method: I understand Volokhonsky does the initial "literal" translation first, from the Russian, after which Pevear perfects the English prose. And that many issues of nuance and balance will come up, which they discuss at length together. In other words, an over-emphasis upon accuracy and weighing each meaning - with the result that the context is de-emphasized. There is a sense of refined, even snobbish, precision in the choice of words, but Pevear seems to have no narrative pulse, rhythm, storytelling sense, or authority of voice. Certain reviewers claim that this awkwardness reflects Tolstoy's style, but I find it hard to swallow that the original book was this frustrating. Yes, the Garnett translation has smoothed out much of the eccentricity with her quaint Victorianism. And the Briggs translation also seems blander in tone. But when I picked up the Maude translation, it was clear it is unmatched. It's witty and aristocratic, the irony perfect, conversational in tone, pitch-perfect dialogue, a clear, flowing narrative, compelling, intense, easy and fast to read. In fact it was Tolstoy's own authorized translation, written during his time. Do yourself a favor and discount all the hype. And if you think you really are in love with the new translation, at least look at a few pages of the Maude. You will be shocked that Tolstoy is actually an enjoyable reading experience.