Book Description
Leo Tolstoy's Writings on Education Edited with an Introduction by Bob Blaisdell Translated by Christopher Edgar

In the years before Leo Tolstoy wrote War and Peace, the great Russian writer founded and ran his own school on his estate at Yasnaya Polyana. Brimming with progressive ideas on schooling, he undertook to teach the peasant children at Yasnaya Polyana reading, history, arithmetic, and notably, imaginative writing. The school was a paradise for Tolstoy, and he published many articles about his teaching experiences during these years. This new collection features the most important of these articles--among them the famous essay, "Are the Peasant Children to Learn to Write from Us, or Are We to Learn from the Peasant Children?"--and two short stories by Tolstoy's students. Tolstoy as Teacher also includes an introductory essay that examines the role of the school in Tolstoy's life and work, an annotated bibliography, and an essay with ideas on how to use Tolstoy's fiction to inspire students to write imaginatively. This book will surprise and delight writers, teachers of imaginati!ve writing from elementary to college level, teachers of English and other subjects, and anyone interested in education or in Tolstoy's work and thought. ... Read more

Book Description

Customer Reviews (10)

A masterpiece in both scope and detail.........
Henri Troyat has done a superb job of crafting the life story of Leo Tolstoy into something which almost reads as a novel, a page-turner in its own right. The intimacy with which he thoroughly knows of and understands Leo Tolstoy's life and his works is nothing short of remarkable, and this is a biography I would be surprised at seeing bettered any time down the road. Tolstoy is on view for all to see, from his world-renowned works, to personal letters written to close acquaintances, to his own personal diary, Troyat makes use of every available resource to give us an up close and personal view of Tolstoy's life.The research done in comprising this most thorough work of Tolstoy's life is simply astonishing.Troyat has crafted a masterpiece which is fun to read, though admittedly this was made a tad easier as it was biography of Tolstoy's life he had to work with.

Tolstoy is a man of many dichotomies and this is at least partly what makes his life so very interesting. He was one of the greatest writers of all time, yet he despised literature. He inspired a peace movement led by Gandhi, and yet at one time owned peasants (admittedly early on in his life). He wrote of how life should be lived, and yet could not get along with his own wife (and wound up dying in a train station at the age of 82). The life of Leo Tolstoy cannot be summarized in a few short paragraphs, and even if it could, it would be doing a great man a grave injustice. Tolstoy deserves a biography which is comprehensive in depth and contains details not only of his life but also of his works......Troyat has given us this. And throughout this book, Troyat draws comparisons between Tolstoy and characters in his literature, such as the time his brothers dragged him to a brothel at the age of 17, leaving him to feel ashamed afterwards (while in one of his works the character visits a brothel only to cry at the edge of the bed afterwards).Many other examples abound throughout the narrative where Tolstoy writes himself into his works.But the average reader would probably not be able to distinguish when Tolstoy in fact does this without the exceptional work of Henri Troyat.Throughout the book it is all too evident that this was a work which Troyat put his heart and soul into, giving us insight into a great man whose life was so wide-ranging, from his early life in Moscow, to his middle years in the Caucauses, to his later years on Yasnaya Polyana.Tolstoy deserves a biography which is a masterpiece in both scope and detail....and Henri Troyat has provided this magnificently.

5 stars. One of the best biographies I have ever read.

The book tells the story, but the mystery remains
Troyat is thorough and comprehensive in telling Tolstoy's story from childhood through youth and into the great creative mature years and the decline and old age. He writes with great knowledge of the complex Tolstoy of innumerable paradoxes and contradictions. Tolstoy is arguably the greatest novelist of all time and yet at times he despises mere literature. Tolstoy aims to be humble and yet cannot abide the literature of Shakespeare because there is the chance that Shakespeare might be greater than Tolstoy. Tolstoy loves and admires his wife and has a large family with her yet comes to despise her and betray her . Tolstoy preaches celibacy and yet indulges himself with peasant women he owns and exploits. Tolstoy in Isaiah Berlin's concept aims to be the hedgehog who understands all reality as one great system and yet is truly a fox in his remarkable observations and understanding of nature and society. Tolstoy is a raw awkward bear of a character who nonetheless develops into a sincere and mature responsible citizen and landholder. Tolstoy is the man of wealth who sits and works with the peasants and would give everything to them. Troyat portrays the contradictions and has the narrative power to sweep us along in telling the story of this giant of world literature. Surely one clue to the endless search for meaning is his loss of his mother when he is two. But every explanation falls short , and it is difficult to make full sense of this remarkable mixture of greatness and difficulty, of wisdom and idiocy , of genius and simple human stupidity , of love and indifference to those he is closest to , which is Tolstoy.
The book tells the story but the mystery remains, as is perhaps true with the life of every person , great or not.

tolstoy reader
an excellent informative book about tolstoy
most fascinating is his relationship described with Turgenev, doestevosky and later chekov. the ending is a cruel one to him as he describes feeling like a hypocrit as ghandi reads his works as his family fights over the spoils of his estate.

Enlightening!
This book is very informative yet reads as lively as a Tolstoy novel. Reading this before, during, or after you read "War and Peace" is very enlightening. Interesting the fact that the author of "War and Peace" struggled with history in school and exclaimed that history was "nothing but a heap of myths and useless, trivial details, sprinkled with dates and names". Other wisdoms include "Bronchitis is an imaginary disease! Bronchitis is a metal!" Highly entertaining. I had to deduct one star due to the fact that there is not one picture in this biography which I find quite odd.

Overly detailed and opinionated
Tolstoy's biography by Troyat is thoroughly documented, and Tolstoy certainly is an interesting subject for a book. I recommend it for people looking for an authoritative source of information.

However, taken as a book to be read, not referenced, it has serious flaws. The main one, which I find inexcusable, is Troyat's comments throughout the book "explaining" Tolstoy to the reader, and being shocked at Tolstoy's inconsistencies. Troyat will show us a scene where Tolstoy lays down a plan for virtuous conduct in his diary, then breaks his own code. Troyat exclaims: "Paradox! Tolstoy is a strange man, breaking his own code". Well, Mr. Troyat, don't we all?
Then, at another instance, he will characterize, say, Turgenev's judgement of Tolstoy, as "lacking in psychology". Troyat, of course, would have known better. In other words, Troyat doesn't try to erase himself from the book, we see his footprints all over. The book should have been named "Troyat's superior knowledge of Tolstoy".

Another related problem with this book is excessive documentation. We are witness to too many changes of opinion in Tolstoy. For, say, his doubts about his feelings for Sofya Bers, this is revealing, but we are subjected to the same ceremony for each acquaintance made by Tolstoy. The point was well taken from the beginning: Tolstoy changed his opinion of himself and others very often. And again, I don't see this as strange: many people are like that. But by the fourth time I saw Tolstoy meet someone, then write on successive days "Excellent" "Superficial" "Vain" "Far superior to me" etc. I was about to give up on the book. In contrast, we don't see enough of what others thought of Tolstoy, and that is a pity, especially since the book's excessive focus on Tolstoy's inner struggle makes it grey and humorless.

To sum it up: can serve well as a reference book, but not as a novel. Read Tolstoy himself, he is more revealing. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

the only way to know tolstoy
i bought both volumes of these letters at a used book store. these are two of my most treasured posessions. i have been greatly influenced by tolstoy's spirituality and the second volume enhanced my understanding of what he felt.
that aside i have two biographies of tolstoy but this is the true way to understand this brilliant writer. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Tolstoy is too vast for such an anthology
This anthology contains some of the great writing of one of the greatest of all writers. In this sense it is invaluable.
But in another it seems to me to miss the mark.
For to break up ' War and Peace' and provide even some of the great passages is to miss the whole sense of the work which is in the presentation of a vast world, a flowing and moving world.
It is in this sense seems to me that Tolstoy is not quite suited for an anthology of this type, and that the reader who would give his attention to close to nine- hundred pages should do this to either one of the two great novels, 'War and Peace' or 'Anna Karenina'.

portable great reading
a very easy to carry around book of great works by tolstoy

A must read
A one in all book to read- I recommend it!! ... Read more

Book Description
36 stories by one of the worlds literature masters, Count Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910) ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Stimulating reading from the whole of Tolstoy's life
I agree with the previous two reviewers and join them in recommending this book, especially to those who have not yet read much Tolstoy.Rather than repeat what's been said, let me add one caveat and two complaints.

First, the caveat.If you already own a lot of Tolstoy's short fiction, you should preview this book to decide whether it offers enough new material to warrant buying.This anthology includes a number of familiar classics (mentioned in the other reviews), but you may decide it's still worth purchasing for the less common and early works.

Now for the complaints._Kreutzer_Sonata_, or _Father_Sergius_?If I had to make an either-or choice, I think I would choose _Father_Sergius_.The editor chose _Kreutzer_Sonata_.A defensible choice, but not my preference.

A more serious complaint I have regards an omission.I would think that a Tolstoy anthology with "courage" and "conflict" in the subtitle would have to include _Hadji_Murat_.Its absence seems an oversight to me.

Despite these minor criticisms, I'm still giving this collection 5 stars on the merits of the works themselves.You will never regret time spent reading Tolstoy.

A Good Collection of Tolstoy's Career
This collection of Tolstoy's work covers a period from 1852 (The Invaders) thru 1893 (Walk in the Light While There is Light).From the first published writing that marked him as a talent too good to ignore, throughhis religious conversion, and his soul-searching conclusions.

Some of hisgreatest short works are here."The Recollections of aBilliard-Marker" is one of the early writings, and one of the betdescriptions of the effects of addiction (in this case an addiction togambling) I have ever read.The Sevestopol Sketches (there are three ofthem) give one of the closest descriptions of men in war possible (thedefense of Sevestopol during the Crimean War, which fell to the British andFrench).A group of religious parables."The Death of IvanIlyitch" is a fantastic description of the internal battles waged whenfighting with death.And "The Kreutzer Sonata" is a discussionof the place of men and women in society that should be required reading byanyone who thinks they understand the opposite sex.

There is enough inthese stories to give the reader a chance to understand the author beforeattacking the larger and more famous major works.

Masterful Fiction by the Master of Fiction
There should be a higher number of stars that could be used for reallyclassic fiction, and if there were, this book would warrant them.Itincludes many of Tolstoy's greatest short stories.The ones that made himfamous.The ones that first showed his talent.

These stories span aperiod of over forty years, from "The Invaders" (1842) to"Walk in the Light While There is Still Light" (1893).We get achance to not only read great stories, but to see the growth of a talentthat started out better than most ever achieve.

"Recollections of aBilliard-Marker" (1855) is a less well known example of Tolstoy'sability to show the degeneration of a character.In this case it is byaddiction to gambling that destroys a man, and the boy who works in abilliard hall who narrates.If this was the only story in the book, itwould be worth buying, but it is not.It's not even the best onehere.

Has there ever been a better description of men at war than"The Sevastapol Letters"?All three are here.Has anyone caughtloneliness and despair better than "The Death of Ivan Ilyitch"? It's here.

No one catches class difference in fewer words.No onedescribes the ways we look at each other, the words we use, the words wedon't use, better than this man.

Since this is a foreign novel, one mustalso mention the translation (by Isabel F. Hapsgood for the SevestapolLetters, and Nathan Haskell Dole for everything else).They are good, theyallow the language the feeling of another time, while allowing it to soundalso current and easily readable.

A great way to cover much of the shortfiction of one of the greatest fiction writers of all time. ... Read more

Book Description

The brilliant shorter novels of Tolstoy, including The Death of Ivan Ilych and Family Happiness, collected and reissued with a beautiful updated design.

Of all Russian writers Leo Tolstoy is probably the best known to the Western world, largely because of War and Peace, his epic in prose, and Anna Karenina, one of the most splendid novels in any language. But during his long lifetime Tolstoy also wrote enough shorter works to fill many volumes. Here reprinted in one volume are his eight finest short novels, together with "Alyosha the Pot", the little tale that Prince Mirsky described as "a masterpiece of rare perfection."

Customer Reviews (11)

Simply Put: An Outstanding Collection
According to many critics,Tolstoy (1828 to 1910) is viewed as one of the greatest novelists of all time, particularly noted for his historical novel War and Peace and later the novel Anna Karenina. The two novels are among the best novels ever written, and depict life in 19th century Russia. Tolstoy was associated with the realism movement and as such his writings are graphic and compelling. The present book is a bargain and brings the reader some of his best short works.

Tolstoy was born on his father's estate in Central Russia, attended college, and joined the military. He served in Chechnya and wrote about his experiences, and later served in Sevastopol where he was involved in intensive fighting. He wrote about life in the Russia military, and he wrote about other historical military events such as the Napoleonic wars. He wrote about historical events and he wrote about people and the mundane events of life. The short novel The Cossacks (included here) came from this early experiences in the military.

War and Peace (1865-69) is generally thought to be one of the greatest and most complicated novels ever written including over 500 characters and a variety of historical details on the Napoleonic wars. Anna Karenina (1877) followed later. It is a beautifully written story of a farmer (Levin) and a woman (Anna ¨Karenina) who have two parallel and loosely interconnected lives.

In addition to those primary novels, Tolstoy wrote other major novels, novellas, and short stories. Some of the best of his writings are here in this collection. They include the important work "The Death of Ivan Ilych" which is a profound but short work, and possibly one of the best novels of all time. There are others such as "The Cossacks," "The Devil," and one of my favorite short stories "Master and Man." Also, there are other stories such as the emotional "Father Sergius," a story that was published later but was a favorite of Tolstoy. Personally speaking, I was not too excited by his tale Hadji Murad, but the other stories are just superb.

The stories here are mostly good to great, and are all a bit different, and all are easy to read. Shakespeare was perhaps the greatest writer ever, but as great as he was, most find the writings of Shakespeare to be a bit opaque. But Tolstoy is completely different. Most stories are clear, easy to read, and they are engaging and compelling. This is a wonderful collection of the best writing by one of the world's great writers.

Not as great!
I had read few stories by tolstoy as a teenager in school and liked. I decided to buy them again and I just dont think I am impressed anymore. Only very few stories are good to read but other than that this looks like a christian book to me with quotes from the Bible.

Death of Ivan Ilych is probably the best thing Tolstoy ever wrote
With that work being the main concern of this review, I must say that probably the most facinating thing about Tolstoy the artist, the man, the philosopher is his lifelong horror and obsession of death. He was a lifelong deathwatcher and with a distinctive brilliance does he describe death in his works, Ivan Ilych being the culmination of his concern with death.

Dostoevsky is without a shadow of a doubt my favorite writer and with that being stated is the obvious superior of his great tempororay Tolstoy. I sometimes regret this because it sometimes blinds me to Tolstoy's greatness. In the case of Ivan Ilych, Tolstoy shines through in all of his literary genius. With this 1886 short novel, one can easily see Tolstoy the literary artist. He chooses a judge who never gives death a thought and yet condemns accused to death. Tolstoy hated judges and one perceives that there is a slight sinister Chekhovian schadenfreude to the title character's sufferings and epiphany in the great Lion as he wrote this one. I remember slightly the storm of thought which surged within me when I finished reading this work about a year ago. Never before had I read a work with a simple plot work laced through with character intrigue (and in this case Tolstoy gets alongside and may have even beaten Dostoevsky when it comes to the latter's utter phenomenal mastry over creating facinating characters) and the philosophical force of a bullet train.

Everyone must at one point in their lives read Tolstoy's incredible work, The Death of Ivan Ilych. It is not only what I would consider to be the greatest short novel ever written but is a testament to the philosophical anguish of a great mind rendered into haunting brilliance and a beauty which leaves its mark upon the stunned reader, never to recover over the magnificence that is Tolstoy.

worth reading
I may be missing something, but the three short stories I read from this Tolstoy collection were good but nothing superspecial.From what I understand War and Peace and Anna Kerrenina are really his masterpieces, but The Death of Ivan Ilych is also well-known.There may also have been something missing in translation as well as across time and culture.

I also read The Devil and The Kreutzer Sonata.Curiously, all three stories all inevitably lead to a death.Cossacks was written 1852-62, while the others were written much later in the mid 1880's.I felt that the later stories had a much more refined writing technique, so I never finished Cossacks.

So those of you who want to get a taste of Tolstoy, these short stories may suffice, though I have a feeling that the only way to "taste" Tolstoy is to take that really big bite and read his major masterpieces.

Best single volume of the short fiction
I prefer the Everyman's volumes because the typesetting is so much nicer.The present volume is a trade-sized paperback with the text simply photo-enlarged from the original mass-market edition. Both volumes use the Maudes' translations, but the Everyman's includes a great many more stories, including the Sevastopol Sketches.On the other hand, Everyman's publishes The Cossacks as a third volume, whereas you get that in here and all the other can't-miss stories.

If you can't afford the Everyman's, this is the one to get. ... Read more

Book Description
'It is impossible to explain why Yevgeny chose Liza Annenskaya, as it is always impossible to explain why a man chooses this and not that woman.'This collection of eleven stories spans virtually the whole of Tolstoy's creative life.While each is unique in form, as a group they are representative of his style, and touch on the central themes that surface in War and Peace and Anna Karenina.Stories as different as 'The Snowstorm', 'Lucerne', 'The Diary of a Madman', and 'The Devil' are grounded in autobiographical experience.They deal with journeys of self-discovery and the moral and religious questioning that characterizes Tolstoy's works of criticism and philosophy.'Strider' and 'Father Sergy', as well as reflecting Tolstoy's own experiences, also reveal profound psychological insights.These stories range over much of the Russian world of the nineteenth century, from the nobility to the peasantry, the military to the clergy, from merchants and cobblers to a horse and a tree.Together they present a fascinating picture of Tolstoy's skill and artistry. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Brilliant Translation and Introduction
Oxford World Classics have been my choice in Russian literature for many years now. These works typically provide excellent introductions and translations of the great Russian literary masters of the 19th century. This book is no exception. Compared to other versions of these stories, I find this book combines the formality of Russian literary style with the simplicity of a casual reader; it captures the mood of the story and relates it quite well to the reader. I would highly recommend this and other Oxford World Classics works. ... Read more

Book Description
Renowned Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910) had an abiding interest in children and children's literature.He started a school for peasant children on his family's estate, and later founded another, experimental school with the motto, "Come when you like, leave when you like."

Fascinated by the simple charm and fresh innocence with which the children of his schools told stories, Tolstoy began writing about his own childhood, emulating the uncomplicated narrative style and disarming directness of the tales told by the children of his acquaintance.After completing WAR AND PEACE, he incorporated these stories in a series of easy readers.Known as THE ABC BOOK (Azbuka) and THE NEW ABC BOOK (Novaia Azbuka), these marvelous readers were widely adopted in Russia and were still in use in the Soviet era.

The tales and fables in this charmingly illustrated volume come mainly from these two well-loved primers.Part 1 consists of stories about Tolstoy's own childhood, all told with beautiful simplicity.Part 2 contains Tolstoy's free adaptations of fables from Aesop and from Hindu tradition.Part 3 is devoted solely to his longest and most famous children's work, the fairy tale "Ivan the Fool and His Two Brothers."

Never patronizing and often humorous, these small gems reveal Tolstoy's deep appreciation for and understanding of children's artistic and moral sensibilities. ... Read more

Product Description
FonoLibro se enorgullece en presentar la obra cumbre de León Tolstoi,Ana Karenina,la cual es considerada como una de las historias de amor más maravillosas de la literatura universal. La novela se desarrolla en la Rusia de los Zares, donde Ana Karenina, una hermosa mujer casada con un poderoso ministro del gobierno ruso, se enamora de un apuesto y rico oficial del ejército, el Conde Vronsky. Buscando la felicidad y desafiando las reglas y normas de la sociedad rusa, Ana Karenina, abandona su esposo e hijo para vivir con su amante, con devastadores resultados.Viva con este maravilloso audiolibro esta gran historia de amor, la cual levanta controversias y conflictos en la sociedad, familia y amigos, y que termina en un inesperado final. ... Read more

Book Description
Tolstoy's quest for truth transcended his roles as a philosopher, soldier, proprietor, and devoted family man. He approached his writing with a conviction that truth can be found and must be embraced. This volume studies Tolstoy extensively, including his War and Peace, Resurrection, and Family Happiness.

This title, Leo Tolstoy, part of Chelsea House Publishers' Modern Critical Views series, examines the major works of Leo Tolstoy through full-length critical essays by expert literary critics. In addition, this title features a short biography on Leo Tolstoy, a chronology of the author's life, and an introductory essay written by Harold Bloom, Sterling Professor of the Humanities, Yale University. ... Read more

Product Description
'Richard Gustafson has written what will undoubtedly prove to be one of the major studies of Tolstoy produced in his generation , an especially thoughtful book, full of ideas, insights, and perceptions that are very much Gustafson's own.''Gustafson's grasp of the Tolstoy canon . . . is truly impressive, and his sensitive, and detailed reading of individual works convincingly establishes the ongoing dialectic between experience,. theological reflection, and artistic creation.... Our appreciation of Tolstoy's fiction and of the Russian theological tradition is greatly enriched by this study. It is possibly one of the very best pieces of 'theology and literature' this reviewer has yet encountered.''Professor Gustafson's exceptional combination of literary, linguistic and theological erudition makes his latest work a landmark in the history of post-war Tolstoyan scholarship.''... a radically new reading, one that may mark a new stage in studies of Tolstoy in the West.' Richard F. Gustafson is Professor of Russian at Barnard College, Columbia University. ... Read more

Book Description
The great Russian novelist and thinker Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910) is largely remembered for his novels, Anna Karenina and War and Peace. But he was also a prolific essayist and storyteller. As compiler Lawrence Jordan notes, "For the Christian, Tolstoy's gospel stories represent Christ-centered fiction at its best-imaginative narratives that put the gospel message into compelling action."

From Tolstoy's numerous religious tales, Jordan has compiled three accessible and lovely stories. This charming translation retains the Russian feel and captures Tolstoy's spirituality. A thorough and fascinating introduction provides context and introduces readers to the writer.

This collection of classic stories is an excellent gift for young and old alike. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

This is a Gem of a book!
Anyone finding themselves intemidated by the works of Tolstoy should start off with reading this book.These three short stories, "Where Love Is, There God Is Also", "The Three Hermits", and "What Men Live By", are some of the most powerful words I have seen put to paper.Those troubled by today's problems owes it to themselves to read this book and absorb the relevance that in fact is timeless.Even those finding a lack of belief in God will be moved and questioned their beliefs.Any of Tolstoy's works are a must read in everyone's lifetime, but these stories remain special to this reader. ... Read more