Tiki Tom
My Mail is Forwarded Here
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- Oahu, North Polynesia
I just finished Volume II (page 600) of “War and Peace”, the Pevear/volokhonsky translation. Only another 600 pages to go. What can I say? So far it is living up to the hype. I’m clueing in that these Russian novels are a different animal than Western Novels. Not so much plot driven as intensely character driven, with numerous sidebars. which is not to say that it does not have a plot, it has several… but they are little creeks that sometimes gush, sometimes disappear beneath the sand. So far I’ve gone through a couple of Napoleonic battles, marriage, child birth, adultery, a duel, a wolf hunt, a love triangle that was later turned into a musical, Masonic philosophy and rituals, and insights into the rules of aristocratic society. The story follows three intertwined aristocratic families as their sons and daughters wheel and deal and try to find happiness. There are several characters that I have come to care about. Tolstoy has keen insights into human nature and society. Again I’m finding it to be accessible and a rip roaring good yarn. I was on the edge of my seat as to if that cad, Anatole, was going to elope with the unsuspecting Natasha. Very dramatic. I will report back again after the next 600 pages!
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