War and Peace - My Favorite Novel - Book Review & Analysis

[@TheEndermanNestGPage]

So glad you're making videos on these kinds of books seems like not many people do that on booktube

[@Nuance88]

Another great review. You seem receptive to the struggle of human experience in literature. If you're curious about contemporary works that contain the same scale and willingness to dive to the depths of humanity-I know you're already reading Gravity's Rainbow, which certainly is epic-I'd recommend three novels by William T. Vollmann, in any order: Europe Central; Fathers and Crows (it says Vol. 2 but is an entirely standalone narrative); and The Dying Grass. Each captures that 'broadness' you describe in War & Peace, and yet each experiments further with form-especially The Dying Grass, which itself takes on a structure unlike any other novel-while focusing on the variety of pains in being human, all the righteous suffering we can instill on strangers and all the turmoil in living amidst grander history. I remember first stumbling onto Vollmann, by chance reading the opening of Europe Central at a bookstore, and it was so exciting reading an author aiming high, not sacrificing complexity for the sake of gratifying a wider audience. I think you'll appreciate his efforts. But beware: his writings retain the depravity of war.

[@TheFox776]

The best books are the ones that continue to reward you the more work you put into them and only get better with each re-read. War and Peace is a personal favorite of mine that I need to take the time to re-read to experience that deeper understanding. Moby Dick is another favorite book of mine that I would be interested to hear your thoughts on.

[@jonahsavage4492]

I'm on my first read-through and just started Volume 4! Before reading, I thought I'd enjoy the war parts much more than the aristocratic sections. However, Natasha quickly became my favourite character, and though I also enjoyed the war parts (specifically Borodino, which was awesome), I always liked returning to the peace sections. All the characters in this book feel so alive, and I think that contributes to the work's vastness.

[@brunogiulliano3758]

really enjoyed the way you express yourself and the content!

[@mattjohn9663]

I finished this book a few months ago. I wanted to get through it as well. I knew before I finished that I would have to read it a second time. I also feel as if it would be beneficial to have an understanding of Russian history and culture BEFORE you read it. I actually enjoyed the "peace" scenes more than the "war" scenes btw. Tolstoy is great but his hatred of Napoleon cant very annoying after a while. Lastly, I feel so bad for Sonya =(

[@lanbaode]

With Putin’s euphemism in Russia’s illegal and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, this classic is now appropriately called: “Special Military Operation and Peace.”