The design and UX isn't done, Rob and Abbie, okkurrrr! 😌
maneatingbadger's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
"I read a Russian novel once," Anderson cut in bleakly. "People with unpronounceable names did nothing for seven hundred and eighty-three pages, after which somebody's aunt died."
- Crusade by David Weber and Steve White
I cannot say this was worth reading. War and Peace alternates between aristocrats' social lives and scenes from the Napoleonic Wars. The former passages are so tedious I gave up a hundred pages into my first attempt and waited more than a year to start over. The latter are relatively more intriguing but not enough so to carry a book, let alone almost a thousand pages, and Tolstoy's philosophical musings on history might've made for an okay, entirely separate short essay (as indeed the Second Epilogue proved to be) but otherwise clog everything up. Occasional moments of brilliance shine through, as when Tolstoy assesses human behavior under duress or the shortfalls of eyewitness accounts amid battlefield chaos. One day I'll figure out how to upload Kindle highlights from Project Gutenberg to Goodreads.Â
So why did I read this? Well, my partner saw Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 on Broadway (which adapts only a 70-page section of War and Peace, though I do appreciate that the first song bemoans how difficult it is to remember all the characters' names) a few years ago and was so smitten by the storytelling she asked for the Pevear and Volokhonsky translation for Christmas, which she seems to still be enjoying. Shortly after, I came across the Maude translation at a used bookstore and decided to read it alongside her. 'Twas a simpler (pre-COVID) time... Then we named our cat after a Tolstoy portrayal in a YouTube comedy series. The rest, as Tolstoy would explain at length, is the interplay between free will and inevitability defining the intangible and infinitesimally reducible force of power that drives history.Â
I cannot say this was worth reading. War and Peace alternates between aristocrats' social lives and scenes from the Napoleonic Wars. The former passages are so tedious I gave up a hundred pages into my first attempt and waited more than a year to start over. The latter are relatively more intriguing but not enough so to carry a book, let alone almost a thousand pages, and Tolstoy's philosophical musings on history might've made for an okay, entirely separate short essay (as indeed the Second Epilogue proved to be) but otherwise clog everything up. Occasional moments of brilliance shine through, as when Tolstoy assesses human behavior under duress or the shortfalls of eyewitness accounts amid battlefield chaos. One day I'll figure out how to upload Kindle highlights from Project Gutenberg to Goodreads.Â
So why did I read this? Well, my partner saw Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 on Broadway (which adapts only a 70-page section of War and Peace, though I do appreciate that the first song bemoans how difficult it is to remember all the characters' names) a few years ago and was so smitten by the storytelling she asked for the Pevear and Volokhonsky translation for Christmas, which she seems to still be enjoying. Shortly after, I came across the Maude translation at a used bookstore and decided to read it alongside her. 'Twas a simpler (pre-COVID) time... Then we named our cat after a Tolstoy portrayal in a YouTube comedy series. The rest, as Tolstoy would explain at length, is the interplay between free will and inevitability defining the intangible and infinitesimally reducible force of power that drives history.Â
Content Warnings
Moderate: War
Minor: Misogyny
audreybelle's review against another edition
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-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
3.5
Undeniably worse than the actual published text. At first it seemed like Tolstoy was writing in a more grounded, character focused voice (for example: wherein actual War and Peace, Tolstoy says something to the effect of "ippolit told a nonsensical story in his terrible Russian with his French accent" in this we are actually given the dialogue of that story and can tell how nonsensical it sounds) but eventually Tolstoy shifts into his normal philosophical bullshit prose. The Andrew Bromfield translation is terrible, and often awkwardly modern, including such poorly chosen phrases as "Anatole is trash" and "Ippolit's stupid face". I suppose it's worth a read if you're obsessed with the same mid-tier villains I am and want the two chapters in which they are slightly more fleshed out. Overall it is still War and Peace (but shorter!)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Alcoholism, Death, Death of parent, Dementia, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Sexism, and Violence
Minor: Incest, Domestic abuse, and Miscarriage
helene_kuragina's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
tense
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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Emotional abuse, Incest, Misogyny, and Suicide
dani007k's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
informative
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Incest, Misogyny, Pedophilia, and Pregnancy
Minor: Incest, Terminal illness, and Sexism
erryesmith's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
But for the epilogue, it would have been 3.5 stars.
The novel and Tolstoy's writing is at its best here when focussing on the cast of characters and the human drama. It was this, against the backdrop of real events, that kept me coming back. The characters were all flawed, to the point of dislikeable at times, but many developed well.
Unfortunately, Tolstoy's repetitive and dry rambling musings on the nature of history, philosophy and God and lengthy description of military manoeuvring, when not done through the lens of a well established character, were a challenge to read and, for me, detracted more than they added.
Can we also talk about Tolstoy's view and interpretation of women? The word problematic may be overused but the only other that comes to mind is "ooft". Uncomfortable depictions of nearly every woman in the text who are all written as controlling, selfish, greedy, conniving, unfaithful and a host of other attributes less than favourable. The character development of Natasha was completely undone and actively subverted in the deeply unpleasant epilogue.
Who hurt you, Leo?
The novel and Tolstoy's writing is at its best here when focussing on the cast of characters and the human drama. It was this, against the backdrop of real events, that kept me coming back. The characters were all flawed, to the point of dislikeable at times, but many developed well.
Unfortunately, Tolstoy's repetitive and dry rambling musings on the nature of history, philosophy and God and lengthy description of military manoeuvring, when not done through the lens of a well established character, were a challenge to read and, for me, detracted more than they added.
Can we also talk about Tolstoy's view and interpretation of women? The word problematic may be overused but the only other that comes to mind is "ooft". Uncomfortable depictions of nearly every woman in the text who are all written as controlling, selfish, greedy, conniving, unfaithful and a host of other attributes less than favourable. The character development of Natasha was completely undone and actively subverted in the deeply unpleasant epilogue.
Who hurt you, Leo?
Content Warnings
Moderate: Misogyny, Antisemitism, Child death, Death of parent, Racial slurs, Suicide attempt, and Violence
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