âWar and Peaceâ is a masterpiece â a panoramic portrait of Russian society and its descent into the Napoleonic Wars which for over a century has inspired reverential devotion among its readers.
This version is certain to provoke controversy and devotion in equal measures. A âfirst draftâ of the epic version known to all, it was completed in 1866 but never published. A closely guarded secret for a century and a half, the unveiling of the original version of âWar and Peaceâ, with an ending different to that we all know, is of huge significance to students of Tolstoy. But it is also sure to prove fascinating to the general reader who will find it an invigorating and absorbing read. Free of the solemn philosophical wanderings, the drama and tragedy of this sweeping tale is reinforced. His characters remain central throughout, emphasising their own personal journeys, their loves and passions, their successes and failures and their own personal tragedies.
500 pages shorter, this is historical fiction at its most vivid and vital, and readers will marvel anew at Tolstoyâs unique ability to conjure the lives and souls of Russia and the Russians in all their glory. For devotees who long for more, for those who struggled and didnât quite make it to the end, or for those who have always wanted to know what all the fuss is about, this is essential reading.
Leo Tolstoy was born in 1828 in Tula, near Moscow. His parents, who both died when he was young, belonged to the Russian nobility, and to the end of his life Tolstoy remained conscious of his aristocratic status. His novels, âWar and Peaceâ and âAnna Kareninaâ are literary classics and he is revered as one of the greatest writers of the nineteenth century. He died in 1910 at the age of 82.
Andrew Bromfield was born in Yorkshire and lives in Surrey, having spent several long periods living in Moscow, where he cofounded and edited âGlasâ. He is best known for his English translations of the work of Victor Pelevin and Boris Akunin.