War and Peace

De: Leo Tolstoy

Narrado por: Frederick Davidson

Often called the greatest novel ever written, War and Peace is at once an epic of the Napoleonic wars, a philosophical study, and a celebration of the Russian spirit. Tolstoy's genius is clearly seen in the multitude of characters in this massive chronicle, all of them fully realized and equally memorable. Out of this complex narrative emerges a profound examination of the individual's place in the historical process, one that makes it clear why Thomas Mann praised Tolstoy for his Homeric powers and placed War and Peace in the same category as The Iliad.

War and Peace was translated by Constance Garnett.

Public Domain (P)2009 Blackstone Audio

Amazing

First, a few technical notes:
- The translation used in the audiobook is the one by Constance Garnett.
- The actual length of the book is about 61 hours, since the last four hours (the epilogues) are repeated twice.

The narrator (whose real name was David Case -- he passed away in 2005) seems to provoke extreme reactions: some people can't stand him, others can't get enough of him. I happen to belong to the second class, and I believe he is especially suited for this novel. However, if you find his voice as irritating as some of the other reviewers, you should probably go for another version.

And now for the book itself. In "The Brothers Karamazov", Dostoyevsky writes: "Show a Russian schoolboy a map of the stars, which he knows nothing about, and he will give you back the map next day with corrections on it." Tolstoy is the ideal to which all such schoolboys aspire, and "War and Peace" is his greatest achievement. Not only is this immense work a novel, it is a place for Tolstoy to expound his views on the causes and persons of the Napoleonic wars, on the methods of historical research, on free will and (of course) the existence of God. I can't say that I found everything convincing or even interesting -- for example, he takes a lot of pains to demonstrate the Napoleon was not a military genius but a blundering fool -- but for the sheer complexity and ambition of this work I cannot help but award it five stars.

Five stars doesn't say it

My limited experience doesn't have a class for War and Peace. Well, I'm no Ph.D, but I've done a respectable stint with the classic. I rattled off a list of reputable authors and how I like them at first, citing it sort of to demonstrate my taste; ultimately I deleted it because even all those invocations of classicism didn't express my newfound reverence for Tolstoy.

Anyway, I had anticipated reading War and Peace (eventually...), but hadn't anticipated it as an audiobook until I got two credits here as gifts. As you may have noticed, I liked it. I really liked it. I liked it so much that that, ruefully, I'm trying to write such a glowing review that people reading will think I must throw "five stars" around all the time, and they'll be wrong: Tolstoy not only snatched the Favorite Book trophy, he ran off with it for half a mile. Funny I've never *read* my favorite book, but there you go.

That's all opinion though, and for all I know an abnormal one. In fact, I'd be surprised if any significant statistic of people liked it as I do, but I'd wager on anybody loving it sooner than her hating it.

I don't think Frederick Davidson will remain my favorite narrator once I've heard more than two. I think he did very, very well with this, but I sympathize with some of the reviewers who couldn't get over some of his intonations. I got over them quite easily, you see, and even appreciate them, but they did take getting over first. Other than that, he slipped up only once in the whole work, mixing up two characters voices in one conversation. This is unabridged War and Peace: that has to count for something by itself.

Last thing, if you don't like history/philosophy/philosophy of history/lengthy tangents thereon, beware. Those things greatly added to my enjoyment, but there you go.

The narrator is an acquired taste

Frederick Davidson is definitely an acquired taste. Other reviews here have noted some of the irritating qualities of his narration: fey, somewhat nasal, pseudo-posh, most sentences ending with a rising inflection, like a question. On the other hand, it should be said that his narration is always clear and energetic, and the characters are given immediately recognizable voices; in this particular case, given the length of the book, the recording is a good value for the money. Listen to the sample, and if Davidson's voice doesn't bother you, get it. (On balance, I'd have to say I prefer the Naxos recording with Neville Jason, although I have some issues with his narration as well.)

Not my favorite classic

Long and boreing, if you want to prove how tough you are, this is the book. I made it through, but only through great determination.

I understand why Tolstoy won a Nobel Prize

I truly great novel. I'm so glad I chose to listen instead of read. The character's were bell developed and reflected the believes and customs of the times.
I truly liked the narrator. At first I thought I would never be able to listen to all of it, but before I knew it I was enjoying the narrator's inflections and character voices.
Well worth the measly $6 and some odd cents it costs.

Ten Stars!

If you, like me, have never had an opportunity to sit and read this book from cover to cover (it's MASSIVE), here's your chance to finally appreciate its genius. The narrator, Frederick Davidson, is amazing. He was able to perfectly capture the dialects and diction of that earlier era. Five stars! I only regret I can't give him a "10"!

A new Tolstoy fan is born! I'm going after "Anna Karenina" next.

Well read but poorly recorded

This needs proper compression and equalization. Also a de-esser would be super useful, this recording is very sibilant and painful to listen to on headphones. Performance is good, so it’s a shame that such simple steps to improve the audio quality wasn’t taken.

Long but worth it!

What did you love best about War and Peace?

This is a history book, war story and love story all in one book.

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

I wish women would narrate women's voices.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I was totally surprised by how much I enjoyed the love story aspect/portions of this book.

Any additional comments?

Most military officers will love this book. The first few hours are TOUGH as the dozen plus characters are introduced. Hang in there. Once you are hooked, YOU ARE HOOKED for 60+ hours.

It was long.

Glad I listened to it, but Leo diving a bit more into the relationships of those on the battlefield, as well as those at home would have made this 147+ y.o. novel more satisfying.
His writing style in this story was superficial on the relationships, and had depth on philosophical matters.

phil·o·soph·i·cal
ˌfiləˈsäfək(ə)l/
adjective
1. relating or devoted to the study of the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality, and existence.

Great read

enjoyed immensely. whould recommend to all. captures the essence of humanity in many diverse characters