WAR AND PEACE
May 05, 2020POST LECTIO : A TIMELESS MASTERPIECE
Title : War and Peace
Author : Leo Tolstoy
Year :1869
Genre : Classic/Historical Novel
- Issac Babel
Summary: The novel follows the stories of Five Aristocratic Russian families that get entwined with the French Invasion of Russia and the Napoleonic Wars in the Tsarist society of Russia.
There is a reason some books are called Classics. And this particular book is the epitome of the genre. From the size of the book, people tend to assume that reading this is going to be a very tough task. But it is not. The characters, once you get to know them, you will be curious to know more about them and their story. The title is a bit misleading, even though it says "War and Peace", there is actually more peace than war. There is hardly 200 pages of battle and fighting. The rest of the book is filled with other, much important episodes.
“ Life is too long to say anything definitely; always say perhaps ”
The writing is remarkably good. The flow of the story is very smooth, once you start reading it, it is very easy to keep going. But there are some parts where you have to push yourselves to move forward, but it is truly worth the effort. All the characters in the novel are beautifully crafted. The way Tolstoy incorporates some real life characters such as Napoleon Bonaparte, Mikhail Kutuzov, etc. is seamless.
“If everyone fought for their own convictions there would be no war.”
One of the main reasons, this novel is celebrated all over the world is because it not only talks about War and Politics, it also talks about Philosophy, Love, Revenge, Patriotism, History, Free Will and so on. At some places in the novel, Tolstoy addresses directly to the readers on the pointlessness of war, how the people who win in battles describe people who lose in the pages of history.
“There is no greatness where there is not simplicity, goodness, and truth.”
According to some readers, this novel is considered to be the Mount Everest of books. Everybody wants to scale the peak, but it does take some effort and time. Just like physically scaling a peak, reading “War and Peace” may seem daunting just at the minute before you take your first step, but the thrill of doing something coveted for by many gives you an exhilaration you cannot imagine. And, when you reach the summit, the view of the the world from the peak is beyond surreality, it is truly a once in a lifetime achievement. The book can be reread but the experience of reading the book for the first time is indescribable.
Written By : Gautham Selvarajan
Post Lectio is a series where we present a spoiler-free review of the books we read.
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