Give War and Peace a Chance

Give War and Peace a Chance
Author: Andrew D. Kaufman
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 304
Release: 2014-05-20
Genre: Literary Criticism
ISBN: 1451644728

“This lively appreciation of one of the most intimidating and massive novels ever written should persuade many hesitant readers to try scaling the heights of War and Peace sooner rather than later” (Publishers Weekly). Considered by many critics the greatest novel ever written, War and Peace is also one of the most feared. And at 1,500 pages, it’s no wonder why. Still, in July 2009 Newsweek put War and Peace at the top of its list of 100 great novels and a 2007 edition of the AARP Bulletin included the novel in their list of the top four books everybody should read by the age of fifty. A New York Times survey from 2009 identified War and Peace as the world classic you’re most likely to find people reading on their subway commute to work. What might all those Newsweek devotees, senior citizens, and harried commuters see in a book about the Napoleonic Wars in the early 1800s? War and Peace is many things. It is a love story, a family saga, a war novel. But at its core it’s a novel about human beings attempting to create a meaningful life for themselves in a country torn apart by war, social change, political intrigue, and spiritual confusion. It is a mirror of our times. Give War and Peace a Chance takes readers on a journey through War and Peace that reframes their very understanding of what it means to live through troubled times and survive them. Touching on a broad range of topics, from courage to romance, parenting to death, Kaufman demonstrates how Tolstoy’s wisdom can help us live fuller, more meaningful lives. The ideal companion to War and Peace, this book “makes Tolstoy’s characters lively and palpable…and may well persuade readers to finally dive into one of the world’s most acclaimed—and daunting—novels” (Kirkus Reviews).

War and Peace

War and Peace
Author: Count Leo Nikolayevich Tolstoy
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
Total Pages: 394
Release: 2015-11-20
Genre:
ISBN: 9781519417596

Epic historical novel by Leo Tolstoy, originally published as Voyna i mir in 1865-69. This panoramic study of early 19th-century Russian society, noted for its mastery of realistic detail and variety of psychological analysis, is generally regarded as one of the world's greatest novels. War and Peace is primarily concerned with the histories of five aristocratic families--particularly the Bezukhovs, the Bolkonskys, and the Rostovs--the members of which are portrayed against a vivid background of Russian social life during the war against Napoleon (1805-14). The theme of war, however, is subordinate to the story of family existence, which involves Tolstoy's optimistic belief in the life-asserting pattern of human existence. The novel also sets forth a theory of history, concluding that there is a minimum of free choice; all is ruled by an inexorable historical determinism. Includes unique illustrations.

A Soldier's Life in War and Peace

A Soldier's Life in War and Peace
Author: A. S. Naravane
Publisher: APH Publishing
Total Pages: 270
Release: 2004
Genre: Artillerymen
ISBN: 9788176484374

"This book chronicles the life and times of Major General A.S. Naravane, both in peace and war. He joined the Indian Military Academy, Dehra Dun in 1936 and was commissioned in 1938. He was amongst the first few who were accepted for the Indian Artillery, which, till 1934 was offered exclusively by the British. His early days in the regiment were one of very hard work and training. The profession of arms was a very highly prized occupation and all was done to make the young officers worthy of being in it. The training methods then are described with much pride and nostalgia. Naravane went to war as a captain and his artillery regiment, the 2nd Field, soon saw action against the then invincible Germans under Rommel. At Bir Hachiem he was taken prisoner. The trials and tribulations as a prisoner are worth reading, especially for the young officer, as they show that whatever the conditions, the first duty of every prisoner of war is to try and escape. Liberty may be lost, but courage and pride in one's regiment, never. The transition from the British Indian Army to a national army is brought out frankly but with restraint. His career and rise to the post of Director of Artillery is, in a way, the conflict of the old and the new that every pre-war officer had to face"--Dust jacket.

Germany and the Next War

Germany and the Next War
Author: Friedrich von Bernhardi
Publisher: Good Press
Total Pages: 270
Release: 2019-11-20
Genre: Fiction
ISBN:

The content of this book is both unpleasant and fascinating at the same time. The views put forward by the author in the period just before the outbreak of WW1 are abhorrent to most people now but Bernhardi had not lived through a world war. Nonetheless, he sees war as 'A biological necessity' for a country's advancement.

Robert E. Lee in War and Peace

Robert E. Lee in War and Peace
Author: Donald A. Hopkins
Publisher: Casemate Publishers
Total Pages: 394
Release: 2013-10-19
Genre: History
ISBN: 1611211212

Robert E. Lee is well known as a Confederate general and as an educator later in life, but most people are exposed to the same handful of images of one of America’s most famous sons. It has been almost seven decades since anyone has attempted a serious study of Lee in photographs, and with Don Hopkins’s painstakingly researched and lavishly illustrated Robert E. Lee in War and Peace, the wait is finally over. Dr. Hopkins, a Mississippi surgeon and lifelong student of the Civil War and Southern history with a recent interest in Robert E. Lee’s “from life” photographs, scoured manuscript repositories and private collections across the country to locate every known Lee image (61 in all) in existence today. The detailed text accompanying these images provides a sweeping history of Lee’s life and a compelling discussion of antique photography, with biographical sketches of all of Lee’s known photographers. The importance of information within the photographer’s imprint or backmark is emphasized throughout the book. Hopkins offers a substantial amount of previously unknown information about these images, how each came to be, and the mistakes in fact and attribution other authors and writers have made describing photographs of Lee to the reading public. Many of the images in this book are being published for the first time. In addition to a few rare photographs and formats that were uncovered during the research phase of Robert E. Lee in War and Peace, the author offers—for the first time—definitive and conclusive attribution of the identity of the photographer of the well-known Lee “in the field” images, and reproduces a startling imperial-size photograph of Lee made by Alexander Gardner of Washington, D.C. Students of American history in general and the Civil War in particular, as well as collectors and dealers who deal with Civil War era photography, will find Hopkins’s outstanding Robert E. Lee in War and Peace a true contribution to the growing literature on the Civil War. About the Author: Born in the rural South, Donald A. Hopkins has maintained a fascination with Southern history since he was a child. In addition to published papers in the medical field, he has written several Civil War articles and The Little Jeff: The Jeff Davis Legion, Cavalry, Army of Northern Virginia for which he received the United Daughters of the Confederacy’s Jefferson Davis Historical Gold Medal. Dr. Hopkins served as Battalion Surgeon for the 1st Battalion, 9th Marines, (better known as “The Walking Dead”) in Vietnam. He was awarded the purple heart and the Bronze Star with combat “V.” Dr. Hopkins is a surgeon in Gulfport, Mississippi, where he lives with his wife Cindy and their golden retriever Dixie.

United States Cavalry Peacekeepers in Bosnia

United States Cavalry Peacekeepers in Bosnia
Author: Mark A. Viney
Publisher: McFarland
Total Pages: 290
Release: 2012-02-15
Genre: History
ISBN: 0786488840

In December 1995, Operation Joint Endeavor--the first-ever ground operation conducted by NATO and the largest military operation in Europe since World War II--sought to implement a peace agreement concluding a bloody, ethnically motivated civil war in Bosnia. The 900 cavalrymen of 1st Squadron, 4th U.S. Cavalry (Quarterhorse) and its attached units comprised a small but prominent portion of an international task force in Bosnia that numbered more than 57,000 NATO soldiers. Despite austere conditions, mountainous terrain, bad weather, tens of thousands of land mines, and threats of terrorist attack, Quarterhorse upheld the peace in one of the most challenging parts of the American sector. Drawn from interviews, firsthand experiences and contemporary media, this account of the first year of NATO's peacekeeping operations in Bosnia addresses every aspect of the squadron's experience, providing a vivid portrait of American armed forces overseas.

Roll Call to Destiny

Roll Call to Destiny
Author: Brent Nosworthy
Publisher: Basic Books (AZ)
Total Pages: 360
Release: 2008-03-04
Genre: History
ISBN:

Pieces together small units' engagements in a variety of battles, drawn from firsthand accounts of those who fought.