War and Peace
by Leo Tolstoy
Tolstoy's most famous and perhaps greatest novel of all time, Tolstoy's War and Peace, tells the story of five families who fought for survival during Napoleon's invasion of Russia. Among his many memorable characters is Prince Andrey Bolkonsky, a proud, flamboyant man who, ignoring the skill of high society, joined the army to achieve fame. Seriously wounded at Austerlitz, he began to open the void of everything to which he had devoted himself. The scene of death is considered one of the largest passages in Russian literature. Another hero of the novel, the grumbling Pierre Bezukhov, tries to find out the meaning of life with the help of a set of philosophical systems that promise to solve all problems. Eventually, Tolstovskaya discovers the truth that wisdom should be found not in systems, but in the usual processes of everyday life, especially in her marriage to Natasha, the most memorable hero of the novel. A candid examination of both individual passions and the epic history of Russia and its people, "War and Peace" is nothing more than a complete portrait of human existence.
