Sometimes, I find myself stalked by certain books. No matter how I attempt to evade them, they follow me around, enticingly overlapping with my other reading and everyday life until it is impossible to ignore them.
Over the past few weeks, War and Peace (a novel I dearly love) has been creeping stealthily into my life.
It started naturally enough. One cold and rainy Sunday afternoon (and there have been plenty of those to choose from these last few months), I picked up my copy, read for an hour or so, and then happily put it back on the shelf and went on my merry way.
But it was not done with me. Not even close.
A short while later, I was reading Eva Ibbotson’s A Company of Swans, set in 1912, and the War and Peace references were plentiful. Our heroine, the daughter of a Cambridge professor, joins a touring Russian ballet company about to embark on a trip to Brazil. Her name, Harriet, being deemed not Russian enough for the ballet, she is given the stage name Natasha since, as one of the other characters observed, she has ears just like Tolstoy’s heroine. Harriet is entirely delighted by her new name but not entirely delighted by all of Tolstoy’s characters:
‘I used…oh, to be Natasha, for years and years. It made me so angry with Prince Andrei.’
‘Angry!’ Dubrov glared at her. ‘What are you saying? Prince Andrei is the finest portrayal of goodness in our entire literature.’
‘Goodness? How can it be good to get someone so ready for love and for life…so absolutely ready – and then just go away and leave them? Like setting them some kind of good conduct exam!’
Speaking of that “good conduct exam”, there is in fact an entire Broadway musical about it. “Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812” is all about Natasha’s brief and disastrous infatuation with Anatole and is playing right now on Broadway. It’s definitely not a traditional musical (so much more electronica than I can handle – which is to say more than none) but it’s a fun one. I’ve been listening the cast recording for a while and I’d certainly love to see this current production.
To cap it all off, the Spring 2017 edition of Slightly Foxed edition arrived and, no surprise, my favourite piece in it was “Moments of Truth” by Christopher Rush, in which he muses about War and Peace.
And there you have it. I cannot seem to get away from War and Peace but, then again, if I had to pick a novel to haunt my days, I’m not sure I would chose any differently.
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The Captive Reader 
I read it in the mid 90s. One day I should read it again, probably as an ebook so that I don’t have to lug around either a massive tome or else one comprising tiny print. Do you have a favourite translation of the novel?
David, I think you give me more credit than I am due! I’m not nearly well read enough to have a favourite translation, having only tried the one (Pevear and Volokhonsky). That said, I hear good things about Garnett’s translation and I do plan to read it for comparison one day.
War and Peace is so great. I read it in the late 80s and again around 10 years ago. I love how it’s so big that you can live in it for a while, more like a house than a book.
What a perfect simile! I remember reading in Anna Reid’s book about the siege of Leningrad that many Russians turned to Tolstoy to distract them from the awfulness of their daily lives. I can only imagine how comforting it would be to lose yourself in this enthralling and familiar book when the world around you is falling apart.
I know what you mean))) I am watching now BBC series and so angry and some scenes, but at the same time I am already not so sure if I remember it correctly, so I have such a desire to sit down and re-read it, so I could say for sure that was correctly or incorrectly portrayed.
I didn’t have anything in particular against the BBC production but, like any adaptation, it wasn’t perfect. I did think Paul Dano was the best Pierre I’ve seen yet, though. And it’s always good to have a reason to reread W&P!
I love that when a book almost seems to call you. Don’t fight it! Also interested to hear about Slightly Foxed. I keep meaning to subscribe. Off to look at that now….Thanks!
Slightly Foxed is an absolute delight! I can’t imagine ever getting rid of my subscription.
Certain books seem to follow me around every so often — it’s like the universe is telling me it’s time to read them! I did read War and Peace back in college, it was basically the entire reading list for a class on Tolstoy. I think I liked it but all I hardly remember anything about it. I’d like to read it again someday but I have so many unread books on my list!
And my daughter saw that musical on Broadway, she said it was wonderful.
I’m about to embark on my first reading of W&P, and hosting a readalong while I’m at it! I can’t wait. I loved the mini series.
I also love how the book haunted you. Are you going to do a full reread? (Or have you, I see this is a few months ago!)
If I could have only one book for the rest of my life, it would be War and Peace 😊 Happy reading 📖