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War and Peace
「戦争と平和」 レフ・トルストイ
War & Peace by Leo Tolstoy, Translated by Anthony Briggs

"War and Peace": not one thing, not merely a novel
in contains...almost everything.
A "soap" drama before TV existed, then, turn the page and the novel
turns into a philosophical essay on the the human condition,
the nature of history, society, science, religion, free-will and determinism...
Though the book is long (1399 pages), the chapters are short.
It was originally published in a literary journal (Russkiy Vestnik)
over a total span of four years.
I spent a year reading it, slowly, intermittently.
There is no need to spend that long but
I recommend taking your time over it and savouring it.
I never grew tired of it, never lost the plot,
though I did grow nervous as to what I would do after finishing it!!
Despite being written 150 years ago it doesn't feel dated.
(though that is down to the brilliant work of the translator too!)
The sense of war as something that happens in other peoples countries,
gradually creeping closer, until it envelopes everything.
Banal everyday obsessions, systemic failure in government and military,
the bias of history, the scheming of social climbers and plotting of religious societies.
Then there are the battles that rage inside the characters,
trying to control their lives, trying to understand the world they live in.
"Pierre" Bezukhov, the Bolkonsky's, the Rostov's... feel like cousins to me now.
...and Tolstoy himself!
What an example of a life fully lived!
Thank you Lev.
Films and TV adaptations are not without their merits...
but honestly, they are only pale reflections,
hollow shells, compared to the book.
War & Peace by Leo Tolstoy, Translated by Anthony Briggs

"War and Peace": not one thing, not merely a novel
in contains...almost everything.
A "soap" drama before TV existed, then, turn the page and the novel
turns into a philosophical essay on the the human condition,
the nature of history, society, science, religion, free-will and determinism...
Though the book is long (1399 pages), the chapters are short.
It was originally published in a literary journal (Russkiy Vestnik)
over a total span of four years.
I spent a year reading it, slowly, intermittently.
There is no need to spend that long but
I recommend taking your time over it and savouring it.
I never grew tired of it, never lost the plot,
though I did grow nervous as to what I would do after finishing it!!
Despite being written 150 years ago it doesn't feel dated.
(though that is down to the brilliant work of the translator too!)
The sense of war as something that happens in other peoples countries,
gradually creeping closer, until it envelopes everything.
Banal everyday obsessions, systemic failure in government and military,
the bias of history, the scheming of social climbers and plotting of religious societies.
Then there are the battles that rage inside the characters,
trying to control their lives, trying to understand the world they live in.
"Pierre" Bezukhov, the Bolkonsky's, the Rostov's... feel like cousins to me now.
...and Tolstoy himself!
What an example of a life fully lived!
Thank you Lev.
Films and TV adaptations are not without their merits...
but honestly, they are only pale reflections,
hollow shells, compared to the book.
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6月14日 - Quakebook - 単行本発売!
『2:46 Aftershocks 午後2時46分 すべてが変わった』 単行本発売

上げの全ては日本赤十字社に寄付されます。
この本はバイリンガルです - 日本語 x 英語。
勉強のためにもなるかも...
ご近くの本屋で、または「アマゾン」では購入できる。
沢山の方々の力で出来きたが、特にPatrick & Yotsuさん:お疲れ!
Well done to Our Man (and Woman) in Abiko, who put the whole thing together and have recently returned from another volunteer stint in the quakezone.

上げの全ては日本赤十字社に寄付されます。
この本はバイリンガルです - 日本語 x 英語。
勉強のためにもなるかも...
ご近くの本屋で、または「アマゾン」では購入できる。
沢山の方々の力で出来きたが、特にPatrick & Yotsuさん:お疲れ!
Well done to Our Man (and Woman) in Abiko, who put the whole thing together and have recently returned from another volunteer stint in the quakezone.
#quakebook が Scala & Kolacny Brothers と Kings of Leon をフィーチャー。 from Quakebook on Vimeo.
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