And the probable cause of this war, which really occurs twice in the novel, is fits of ego particularly on Napoleon’s part, and a combination of hurt feelings and pride on the part of Czar Alexander.
Tolstoy’s chronicling the Napoleonic War, or at least that part of it between Napoleon’s French troops against those of Russia under Czar Alexander II. I didn’t realize that “War and Peace” is a virulently anti-war novel, but that it is. In fact, it is probably too long and occasionally repetitive, but a great novel it indeed is (I can’t claim that there is a “best novel ever written”, but “War and Peace” is one of the best I’ve ever read). I was amazed at how rapidly the book went by–it is notoriously long and often considered the finest novel ever written. This year’s big novel was “War and Peace”, by Leo Tolstoy (which, in Russian slang, means “fat lion”). August is usually a slow month for me, and I’ve often read 19th century novels during the summers over the years, novels I didn’t read along the way or in school decades ago.
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