Tolstoy is equally known for his complicated and paradoxical persona and for his extreme moralistic and ascetic views, which he adopted after a moral crisis and spiritual awakening in the 1870s, after which he also became noted as a moral thinker and social reformer.

It's 1812. Russia is on the brink of invasion. Three individuals are intent on saving and sacrificing it all.When Napoleon's army sets foot on Russian soil, Russia swiftly responds by declaring an all-out war on France that leaves no prisoners behind. From the peasants to the nobility, it's impossible for Russian society to escape the clutches of war. And when the entwined fates of three unlikely friends come to fruition, there's no telling who will suffer the most.Weaving ...

The Devil is a short story by Leo Tolstoy. It was written in 1889, given an alternative ending in 1909,but published only posthumously in 1911. Like Tolstoy's The Kreutzer Sonata, written around the same time, "The Devil" deals with the consequences of sexual emotion. Two young men, Eugene Irtenev and his brother, are left a large inheritance after the death of their father. However, the inheritance is saddled with debts, and the brothers must decide whether or not to accept it. Eugene acc...

Ivan Ilyich, a worldly high court judge, whose life is complete with all of the trappings of success — respectable family, respectable job, respectable home — has never given the inevitability of his dying so much as a passing thought. But now he must face his own mortality. "The Death of Ivan Ilyich" gives an unflinching glimpse into one man's grappling with the terrifying abyss of looming death. In what is hailed as one of the supreme masterpieces on the subject of death and dying, Leo T...

War and Peace (Pre-reform Russian: Война и миръ, Voyna i mir) is a novel by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy, first published in its entirety in 1869. Epic in scale, it is regarded as one of the central works of world literature. It is considered Tolstoy's finest literary achievement, along with his other major prose work, Anna Karenina (1873–1877). War and Peace delineates in graphic detail events surrounding the French invasion of Russia, and the impact of the Napoleonic era on Tsarist soc...

Anna Karenina is a novel by the Russian writer Leo Tolstoj, published in serial installments from 1873 to 1877 in the periodical The Russian Messenger. Tolstoj clashed with editor Mikhail Katkov over political issues that arose in the final installment (Tolstoj's negative views of Russian volunteers going to fight in Serbia); therefore, the novel's first complete appearance was in book form in 1878. Widely regarded as a pinnacle in realist fiction, Tolstoj considered Anna Karenina his firs...

Anna Karenina is a novel by the Russian writer Leo Tolstoy, published in serial installments from 1873 to 1877 in the periodical The Russian Messenger. Tolstoy clashed with editor Mikhail Katkov over political issues that arose in the final installment (Tolstoy's negative views of Russian volunteers going to fight in Serbia); therefore, the novel's first complete appearance was in book form in 1878. Widely regarded as a pinnacle in realist fiction, Tolstoy considered Anna Karenina his firs...

The Devil is a short story by Lev Tolstoj. It was written in 1889, given an alternative ending in 1909,but published only posthumously in 1911. Like Tolstoy's The Kreutzer Sonata, written around the same time, "The Devil" deals with the consequences of sexual emotion. Two young men, Eugene Irtenev and his brother, are left a large inheritance after the death of their father. However, the inheritance is saddled with debts, and the brothers must decide whether or not to accept it. Eugene acc...

"The last word of the landlord's literature and the brilliant one at that." —Fyodor Dostoyevsky "The best ever Russian historical novel." —Nikolai Leskov "One of the most remarkable books of our age." —Ivan Turgenev "This is the first class work!… This is powerful, very powerful indeed." —Gustave Flaubert "The best novel that had ever been written." —John Galsworthy "This work, like life itself, has no beginning, no end. It is life itself in its eternal movement." —Romain Rolland "The grea...

George Orwell's timeless and timely allegorical novel—a scathing satire on a downtrodden society’s blind march towards totalitarianism.“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”A farm is taken over by its overworked, mistreated animals. With flaming idealism and stirring slogans, they set out to create a paradise of progress, justice, and equality. Thus the stage is set for one of the most telling satiric fables ever penned—a razor-edged fairy tal...

George Eliot's "The Mill on the Floss" is a richly woven narrative exploring the complexities of familial ties, personal aspirations, and societal constraints in 19th-century England. The novel intricately details the lives of siblings Maggie and Tom Tulliver, alternately celebrating and critiquing the rigid moral landscape of their rural community. Eliot employs a masterful blend of psychological insight, vibrant character development, and poignant social commentary, illuminating the tens...

In "Silas Marner," George Eliot crafts a poignant exploration of isolation, redemption, and the transformative power of love within a rural English setting. This novel, rich with detailed descriptions and character development, employs Eliot's trademark psychological insight to delve into the life of Silas, a weaver whose misfortunes lead him to live in solitude. The narrative unfolds against the backdrop of early Victorian England, reflecting the tension between industrialization and trad...