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spirotechnics's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Wow. This book. Honestly, there isn't much that I have to say that hasn't already been said. It's an incredibly well-written piece of literature that I had the joy of reading for class. But holy fuck was this book long. With the time constraints I had, I needed to read the book a lot faster than I would have originally liked to when reading for leisure, and thus, I feel I may have missed some important moments. Nevertheless, what I was able to remember was quite an enjoyable read.
Andrey was by far one of the most interesting and nuanced characters I've read as of late and seeing how he grappled with various circumstancesand his own mortality was incredibly entertaining. It literally broke me when he died, especially since it was such a long, drawn out process. I was right along with Natasha and Marya. Tolstoy ragging on Napoleon was also incredibly funny. The main reason I'm removing points is because I am a bit annoyed with the way Natasha was "manic pixie dream girl-ed" by a good chunk of the male cast. Don't get me wrong, I adored her, but there were times where hearing how all these guys were obsessed with her was a bit much. Helene also deserved so much better than what she got, in spite of her flaws. Also, while the prose was incredibly wonderful, it very much did drag at some moments, which was kinda irritating. Incredible book!
Andrey was by far one of the most interesting and nuanced characters I've read as of late and seeing how he grappled with various circumstances
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide and Suicide attempt
nosey667's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
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? Yes
4.75
"Here I am alive, and it's not my fault, so I have to try and get by as best I can without hurting anybody until death takes over."
i was intimidated by this book before starting it, as everyone is i think. i read the penguin classics edition translated by Anthony Briggs and the translation is really accessible and i actually had a much better and straightforward reading experience than i thought i would.
onto the actual book: this 100% deserves its reputation ad Tolstoy's writing is just amazing. its a perfect mix of romance, war, character flaws, relationships, philosophy, i'd say theres something for everyone in this book, something everyone can take away from reading it.
one upside to reading a book of such a length obviously is you get to stick around with the characters ad watc them grow, and i think this book shows one of the best examples of character development and character development that i've ever read, as well as with the relationships that develop between the characters. when reading a classic novel you dont expect (or i dont at least) to build such a care for the characters but in this you really do. Prince Andrei, Pierre and Natasha's stories all intertwine and will make you want to stick to the end.so much so that the death of Prince Andrei utterly shattered me.
i think my favourite relationship was between Prince Andrei and Natasha. i think the brought out the best in eachother, especially on his side.
the friendship between Natasha and Pierre i liked too. they seem so pure and just happy together which was so nice to read.
"The whole world is split in two for me now: one half is her, and its all happiness, hope and light; and the other is not her, and its all misery and darkness..."
i do think that Tolstoy went a little overboard with the philosophy and war scenes. dont et me wrong, the philosophical discussions were interesting, but i found part II of the eprologue largely unnecessary. i found he repeated a lot of the same ideas; that there is no single cause for events and that free will doesnt really exist, as a couple of examples. the metaphors use were really good for emphasising the points he made though.
this books also one that as soon as you finish it you feel you need to read it again just to see the parts that you missed, because inevitabely there will be passages or hidden morals that you would have missed on the first time round in such a massive, complex book such as this. it's wort watching/reading/listening to other readers interretations of the book i think to make the eperience even better and view it in a different light.
overall, i preferred the more character oriented parts of the novel over the war and philosophical chapters. i think parts were unneecessarily stretched out and could have been shortened, but nevertheless it is worth the read and is really, really worth it in the end. i won't forget the experiece.
"But how can you think of living for yourself? What about your son, your sister, your father?"
"Yes, but they're the same as me. They're not other people."
i was intimidated by this book before starting it, as everyone is i think. i read the penguin classics edition translated by Anthony Briggs and the translation is really accessible and i actually had a much better and straightforward reading experience than i thought i would.
onto the actual book: this 100% deserves its reputation ad Tolstoy's writing is just amazing. its a perfect mix of romance, war, character flaws, relationships, philosophy, i'd say theres something for everyone in this book, something everyone can take away from reading it.
one upside to reading a book of such a length obviously is you get to stick around with the characters ad watc them grow, and i think this book shows one of the best examples of character development and character development that i've ever read, as well as with the relationships that develop between the characters. when reading a classic novel you dont expect (or i dont at least) to build such a care for the characters but in this you really do. Prince Andrei, Pierre and Natasha's stories all intertwine and will make you want to stick to the end.
the friendship between Natasha and Pierre i liked too. they seem so pure and just happy together which was so nice to read.
"The whole world is split in two for me now: one half is her, and its all happiness, hope and light; and the other is not her, and its all misery and darkness..."
i do think that Tolstoy went a little overboard with the philosophy and war scenes. dont et me wrong, the philosophical discussions were interesting, but i found part II of the eprologue largely unnecessary. i found he repeated a lot of the same ideas; that there is no single cause for events and that free will doesnt really exist, as a couple of examples. the metaphors use were really good for emphasising the points he made though.
this books also one that as soon as you finish it you feel you need to read it again just to see the parts that you missed, because inevitabely there will be passages or hidden morals that you would have missed on the first time round in such a massive, complex book such as this. it's wort watching/reading/listening to other readers interretations of the book i think to make the eperience even better and view it in a different light.
overall, i preferred the more character oriented parts of the novel over the war and philosophical chapters. i think parts were unneecessarily stretched out and could have been shortened, but nevertheless it is worth the read and is really, really worth it in the end. i won't forget the experiece.
"But how can you think of living for yourself? What about your son, your sister, your father?"
"Yes, but they're the same as me. They're not other people."
Content Warnings
Graphic: War
Minor: Suicide
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
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