Who is interested in participating in a group read of War and Peace this summer?
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Well I ordered the chunkster so I guess I’m here for the duration.
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Count me in. Have always wanted to tackle it but lacked the courage.
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Me too @Gabi_J . I’ve already fessed up that I’m a bit intimidated by W&P. @kim.kovacs swears we will get through it and maybe even enjoy it. Do you have any preferences for start date? I think my book should be here sometime this coming week.
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No preference for start date. My book should also be here this week. Trying to find an audiobook version. The Penguin Briggs version is not sold in the US.
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Yay! The more the merrier!
@Gabi_J, please let me know if you find the Briggs translation in ebook. I wasn’t able to find one, but there are so many versions on Amazon I may have just missed it.
I did spend, like, $1.00 each on several different versions. I’d like to read a few pages of each & see what I think.
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I haven’t found an ebook or audiobook of the Briggs version. Will likely go with a Garnett audiobook version and juggle between book and audiobook. Not ideal but can’t see hauling the tome in a carry-on. If the audiobook doesn’t have chapters I will probably bookmark it ahead. Will make it work!
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Just found a free Audible Maude version with a narrator I think I can listen to for 60 hours!
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It might actually be interesting to have the audio in a different version. Sometimes the translations are amazingly different. I just want mine to be readable which @kim.kovacs has promised it is.
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… oh, the pressure!
Seriously, it’s historical fiction. You folks will enjoy it.
I do this to myself all the time. I am probably going to regret this, but I’m seriously considering tackling this project.
My concerns are that I will be reading this with other experienced readers, and I can only read the ebook with the Louise and Aylmer Maude translation. Reading has been a life saver for me this past year, and at the age of 75 this will be an amazing goal for me.
Please include me but also have patience with my comprehension. 
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I decided to treat myself and I did order the hardback with the Briggs translation.
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I’m excited! What a magnificent group of readers!
@Lynne_G, you’re every bit as experienced as the rest of us! I bet you don’t regret giving it a go.
It’s been a good 20 years but don’t remember this being a particularly challenging read. It’s just intimidatingly long! Man, the book is huge so try not to freak out when the physical copy hits your doorstep.
“How do you eat an elephant” and all that.
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@kim.kovacs I can’t believe I’m thinking about participating, but have some questions. I apologize if you’ve already outlined what I’m going to ask, but I haven’t been able to locate your original post.
- How many weeks are you anticipating the read to take?
- I see several individuals are using the Briggs or Maude translation. I have the Signet Classics paperback that I purchased many years ago. The translation is by Ann Dunnigan. Is this going to be a hindrance?
- Will there be periodic scheduled discussions, thoughts, etc. or will the entire novel be discussed at the end of the reading timeframe?
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Whoo hoo! Another vict… uh… I mean READER! Yeah… another reader!
14 to 16 weeks, about 100 pp per week, give or take. I thought it might be good to schedule a couple of catch-up weeks if needed.
I’ll list a separate topic for each week’s reading and people are welcome to post thoughts for each section as they read along. I may also post a quick summary (from Sparknotes or an AI tool or something).
The different translation shouldn’t be an issue. In fact, it’ll be interesting to see if different versions bring different facets of the text to light.
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I think the biggest problem people are likely to have with the book is the names. I’ll post a reference topic at some point that’ll list the characters. One of my ebooks has a list that I can copy and paste here.
It’ll be interesting to hear from you folks if listening via audiobook makes the names easier or harder to follow.
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(I only laughed this hard because of the 20 character requirement.)
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YAY @Lynne_G. You and I are of an age so we will get through this together. I love that you committed to ordering the book. Let’s do this!
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Yes, @Lana_Maskus. Jump right in, the water is fine. @kim.kovacs is the only one among us with any experience of this tome so we will just treat it like the elephant as she has suggested.
If you tap on the Community Book Clubs title right above this thread, then scroll down a bit, you will see a thread with a proposed schedule. I had said I didn’t want to read this to the exclusion of all others and I’m pretty sure @kim.kovacs schedule wouldn’t allow that, we agreed to 10-20 pgs per day. I think her proposed schedule works out to about 17 pgs per day if my memory is still working.
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I totally appreciate your concerns as I have had past concerns myself, being intimidated by such a smart group of readers. However, what you will find is that this group of women,@kim.kovacs @Anne_Glasgow and @Lana_Maskus are incredibly respectful, kind, and thoughtful. So glad you are jumping in!!!
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