War & Peace

 I've started War & Peace. As I wrote earlier, I had seen a bunch of book bloggers plan to read the novel over 2020, a chapter a day. Unfortunately, I hadn't seen that till around March. But I'm on a long trip now and figured, why not read two chapters a day? Get 'er done in six months instead! So I started it on Sunday. It's so good!

I studied Russian and Russia's history for years and years. I was never much into reading classic books though. About 20 years ago, the wife and I decided to start (for us both) or reread (for her) classics we should have read already. Books like Moby Dick, Don Quixote, 1984, East of Eden. But I'd never really read any Russian classics. 

My first Russian classic I read in 2006: Crime and Punishment. What an awesome read. (If you haven't read it, move ahead to the next paragraph.) What a writer Dostoevsky was! How in the world did I feel for Roskolnikov by the end? The guy was a horrible murderer. Amazing writing. 

When we first lived in Moscow, I decided to try The Master and Margarita. Боже мой! A new favorite! Couldn't believe how good that book was. I'll have to reread that one soon. Been over 10 years. 

As for W&P, I did try it back in late 2000. It was my gym read back when I would sit on the bike for 30 minutes to an hour. I got halfway. It just got to be too much and, even with my Russian knowledge, I still had to look back to the dramatis personae often. 

But since then I've spent almost five years in Russia, traveling the country, meeting the people, learning more. There's something to be said for having first-hand experience. Recently I read the terribly unrealistic Charm School by Nelson DeMille. But what was great about it were the descriptions of Moscow, a city I miss. I had the same feeling when I read the incredibly original vampire story The Night Watch. And of course, Metro 2033. All of these books had Moscow as a setting. (I felt the same reading Cannery Row after living in Monterey, California, three times.)

So this time, I intend on finishing War and Peace.