"Tolstoy's War & Peace?" Topic

Have you really read it? Cover to cover?

Yes. Twice.

Fantastic book. I appreciated it better the second time around.

Never.

audiobook – all 61 hours – fantastic

Tried, too boring. The recent miniseries made me give up ever trying again, if it was a decent version of the book (which the few links I followed online seemed to claim, but this is the internet) then it is too much of a soap opera for me.

Chick book, too much personal angst and social stupidity. (Ducking behind cover for many reasons)

No; tried several times and abandoned it each time to read Chandler's Campaigns of Napoleon instead.

Rick

Tried, twice, couldn't do it. Same with Gone With the Wind.

Yes. Couple of times.

Yes, once.

At least four times. Hands down, the greatest novel I've ever read. Cthstis the opinion of many critics, as well.

Yes, several times. It does pale in comparison to Anna Karenina.

Read it twice years ago and just down loaded it to my Kindle for another go around :)

Yes. Read it for the second time late last year.

Yes. I enjoyed it, but I do agree with jeffreyw3 that Anna Karenina is better.

All happy books are alike; each unhappy book is unhappy in its own way.

Once, and loved it. An Unwin & Allen hardback publication for me from memory, with a bookmark covering all the families.

Twice, in high school…got a lot of looks lugging that brick around for weeks.

Yes.

No, and no plans to do so either. Not a dig against the book, it's that I really just don't read much historical fiction.

Tried a long time ago – hard to keep the characters separate but probably deserves a second try

Tried and failed. I do have a copy of the Russian made movie.

That's a negative. I did read through "Quiet Flows the Don" and that was plenty (though I did like it)

Nope.

M Sholokov's Q Fs t D?……….…respect. W&P you can at least pick out the bits with some fighting. QFs t D, the book was even slower going than the film, but we will forgive Bonadarchuk for that

Yes, once, and I found it pretty tedious just like nearly all of the characters.

Yes I have read it several times.

For a first time reader the secret is to take it on in pieces as it can be a struggle to complete it You are reading for enjoyment and not because you have to Start off by reading only a few chapters a day and stop when you get tired.This will let you focus on the writing with its beautiful imagery and insights as well as the story itself

Yes, along with Anna Karenina and Quiet flows the Don, excellent books. Good to see there are others out there who have read this novel. I have met 3 during my life who have also read the book.

Once, during high school (in the pre Cambrian era) and loved it. Perhaps if I get the Kindle version I'll read it again. Won't have to tote that big book around.

Yes.

Bits are great. But there are a lot of tedious bits as well. What Tolstoy needed was a good editor…

Twice, about a year ago was last. In last winter watched the whole Russian 1966 version without subtitles.
But then I do think it's one of the best historical novels ever.

p.s. I have a Count Bezuhov figure

Never. Did see the movie.

Once, cover to cover, re-read some of the battle scenes a couple of times.

Yuppers. Should give it another read, it's been awhile.

Yes. In college, recreational.

Read it in 2012 as a New Years' resolution. Won't have time in this life to read it again.

I read And Quiet Flows The Don back in the '60s while recovering from my first tour in Vietnam. Great novel. War and Peace, on the other hand, was a high school reading assignment (the kiss of death for many a book) handed down by the worst English Lit teacher in the history of the universe. I still have yet to finish it.

LT

I'm on my way thru it the forth time. Why? Because I am so sick and tired of the election and the------------------------- !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

No. Not interested.

Yes, just recently for the first time. The print version I have was printed in 1942 and had a little blurb about the parallels of Hitler's invasion and Napoleon's invasion in 1812. This blurb was all the more interesting as, at the time of the book print, WWII was far from over!

I thoroughly enjoyed War & Peace. I will definitely be reading it again some day.

War and Peace – read three times. Each time it gets a little more clear, though I do get tired of Tolstoy's fawning over the Russian peasant. The Russian movie is abominable, clearly done with a "socialist-realism" direction of the communist regime. Leaves out many key events, and glosses over several important characters.

Loved "And Quite Flow the Don" the first time, the second the constant drumbeat of all officers are evil got old.

Read Dr. Zhivago if you want a great book about the Russian Revolutionary times – the movie is beautiful, but thin. Makes Komerovski even more slimey than he is in the movie, though he does save Lara.

Read it and enjoyed the miniseries.