War & Peace - Softcover

Life and death. Free will and destiny. Joy and suffering. These are the dualities that Leo Tolstoy explores in this epic "War and Peace", as he tells the story of several families at the top of Russian sociery at the dawn of the nineteenth century. Though the families lead lives of gilded pleasure, there elegant soirees and hunting parties are held in the lengthening shadow of Napoleon's advancing army. War will not only bring destruction to the vast Russian landscape, but also death and the unraveling of the rigid social order. Tolstoy presents the brutal realities of war as a testing ground for men and nations. His protagonists search for meaning in their own lives, as they are swept up in the tidal wave of war and social upheaval. The coldly intellectual Prince Pierre Andrei Bolkonsky seeks escape from the seeming futility of his life, while the emotional nobleman Bezukhof finds long-sought peace through suffering. Through bloody battles, passionate love affairs, and family intrigues, Tolstoy is able to depict both the psychological growth of individuals and the massive struggles of a people . Long honored as one of the greatest works in world literature, "War and Peace" continues to compel that attention and devotion to this day.