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Banned in Russia, Tolstoy's The Kingdom of God Is Within You was deemed a threat to church and state. The culmination of a lifetime's thought, it espouses a commitment to Jesus's message of turning the other cheek. In a bold and original manner, Tolstoy shows his readers clearly why they must reject violence of any sort—even that sanctioned by the state or the church—and urges them to look within themselves to find the answers to questions of morality.In 1894, one of the first English translations of this book found its way into the hands of a young Gandhi. Inspired by its message of nonresistance to evil, the Mahatma declared it a source of «independent thinking, profound morality, and truthfulness.» Much of this work's emotional and moral appeal lies in its emphasis on fair treatment of the poor and working class. Its view of Christianity, not as a mystic religion but as a workable philosophy originating from the words of a remarkable teacher, extends its appeal to secular and religious readers alike.

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Tolstoy's novella blends fiction and historical fact to portray a legendary Avar chieftain who switched sides in the nineteenth-century Russo-Caucasian war. Inspired by the author's military service, Hadji Murád offers riveting views of warfare and treason, murder and vengeance, and behind-the-scenes political plotting. An uncharacteristically brief story by the creator of War and Peace, it voices Tolstoy's pacifist beliefs. This novella also provides a compelling depiction of the Caucasus, a mountainous territory between the Black Sea and the Caspian, prized for its strategic location and natural resources. Located at the crossroads of three empires — Turkey, Persia, and Russia — the region has long struggled with incursions by its neighbors and remains a troubled corner of the world to this day. Tolstoy's realistic pictures of life in a war zone raise enduringly relevant issues of life and death.

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Although best known for War and Peace and Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy did not confine his literary talents to voluminous works. He was also a master of the short story and the long story — the particularly Russian form known as povest'. Each of the tales in this collection exhibits the rich detail, vivid narration, and startling truths that characterize Tolstoy's famous novels.Two unusual, intriguing short stores — «Three Deaths» and «The Three Hermits» — appear here, along with four powerful long stories: «Family Happiness,» «The Devil,» «Father Sergius,» and «Master and Man.» «Family Happiness,» the first story in this compilation, features a Tolstoyan theme that recurs both here and elsewhere in the author's writings: «The only certain happiness in life is to live for others.» Written over a period of 40 years or more, these works display the author's evolving perspectives on love, marriage, art, politics, and patriotism. They offer an eclectic introduction to the great Russian writer's fiction as well as a feast for those already acquainted with the pleasures of reading Tolstoy.

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Despite having written War and Peace and Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy, at the age of 51, looked back on his life and considered it a meaningless, regrettable failure. A Confession provides insight into the great Russian writer's movement from the pursuit of aesthetic ideals toward matters of religious and philosophical consequence.Authentic and genuinely moving, this memoir of midlife spiritual crisis was first distributed in 1872 and marked a turning point in the author's career as a writer: in subsequent years, Tolstoy would write almost exclusively about religious life, especially devotion among the peasantry.Generations of readers have been inspired by this heartfelt reexamination of Christian orthodoxy and subsequent spiritual awakening. Ranked among the best books on the subject, this timeless work is for anyone who has ever worried about the fleeting nature of life and speculated about the value of existence.

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ANNA KARENINA, the ORIGINAL 1901 English translation by Constance Garnett and written by Russian writer Leo Tolstoy (1828 – 1910) is considered as one of the greatest novels ever written and Tolstoy&#39;s first true novel. It is divided into eight parts and was initially published between the years 1873 to 1878 in a publication called &quot;The Russian Messenger&quot; as serial installments. The main character Anna is married into Russian aristocrat and later has a love affair with a handsome military officer Count Vronsky. Some major themes include marriage, fidelity, passion and jealousy set in nineteenth century Russian high society.<br><br>This digital edition is beautifully formatted with an active Table of Contents that goes directly to each chapter and all eight parts of the story. Mermaids Classics, an imprint of Mermaids Publishing brings the very best of old book classics to a modern era of digital reading by producing high quality books in ebook format.

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Perhaps one of the greatest novels ever written, «Anna Karenina» follows the self-destructive path of a beautiful, popular, and sensual Russian aristocrat. The lovely Anna seems set in a respectable marriage with the powerful statesman Karenin, yet their lack of passion breeds the discontent she fully faces upon meeting the elegant and affluent officer Count Vronsky. Soon convinced that allowing herself to deeply love this man will enable her to find the meaning and truth of her life, Anna defies the conventions of Russian society and leaves her husband and children for her lover. Tolstoy juxtaposes this ill-fated couple with the melancholy Levin and his new wife Kitty. Levin is also searching for the fulfillment and happiness in his life, and he ultimately finds a happiness that Anna's love does not. A portrait of marriage and infidelity in imperial Russia, «Anna Karenina» explores love, life, and the depths of the human soul in a tale as illuminating as it is tragic.

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Considered one of the best books ever written, «War and Peace» has remained in the upper echelon of world literature because it masterfully captures an intimate view of humanity on an epic scale. Through the use of fictional narrative, Tolstoy utilizes a huge cast of characters, centering on five aristocratic Russian families in 1805, during the Napoleonic Wars. These characters, particularly Pierre, Prince Andrei, and the beautiful Natasha, demonstrate different human struggles that are affected by their history, present era, and culture. They simultaneously develop the concepts on which Tolstoy expounds in the thematic essays interspersed throughout the narrative: a person's free will and the shaping of historical events, morality in an imperfect world, youth and age, marriage and death, and, of course, war and peace, in a work so groundbreaking that it was not considered a novel when published in 1865. In redefining the fictional novel, Tolstoy's genius has explored what is fundamentally human with scope and Russian spirit. Presented here in this edition is the second of two volumes.

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“The Death of Ivan Ilyich” tells a tale of a man in his 40s who has spent his entire life climbing the social ladder in Russia. Barely tolerant of his wife and generally indifferent to the other people around him, Ivan has a minor accident hanging curtains in a new apartment that proves to be a terminal injury. As his life slowly and painfully spirals inexorably toward death, Ivan struggles immensely against what he perceives to be an unfair fate. Only in the end does he see how he might have lived a different and more authentic life. In this and the other short stories of this collection the themes of loss and death are brilliantly explored by one of the world’s greatest writers. Also included in this collection are the following other stories: “The Invaders” (or “The Raid”), “The Wood-Cutting Expedition,” “Three Deaths,” “Polikushka,” “After the Dance,” and “The Forged Coupon.” This edition follows the translations of Benjamin R. Tucker and Nathan Haskell Dole.

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"In the Days of Serfdom" and Other Stories , originally published in 1911, presents in miniature themes developed in Tolstoy's longer works War and Peace and Anna Karenina . The compelling stories in this collection have largely been ignored by contemporary scholars and teachers because of their general unavailability. Available once again, the stories reveal new thematic and stylisitic dimensions to Tolstoy's oeuvre. While not all of the stories deal with actual serfdom, they all address the legacy of serfdom, of choicelessness, in Tolstoy's Russia. These stories are also thoroughly modern, concerned as they are with the market economy, changing values, and women's roles in society. Artistically and historically significant, they constitute ethical and spiritual questionings that deal with lives out of control, with characters making sense of the experience of living.

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A man boards a train: the confined space of the carriage triggers potent memories. Soon he is confessing to a terrible crime, one for which he holds Beethoven’s Kreutzer Sonata responsible.‘Nancy Harris’s English adaptation combines icy precision with mordant wit…’ – Charles Spencer, Daily Telegraph ‘Nancy Harris’s crisp and emotionally intelligent adaptation conveys the power of the Tolstoy original….. The experience of Harris’s play is a jolt to the system, a journey into the pathology of suspicion and self-loathing’ – Henry Hitchings, Evening Standard ‘An extraordinarily compelling adaptation of Tolstoy’s great, warped novella.’ – Paul Taylor, Independent[/i] ‘Tolstoy’s sensational 1889 novella has been dashingly adapted by Nancy Harris – she can wield a knife as precisely as Pozdynyshev.’ – Kate Kellaway, Observer Though this ‘Kreutzer Sonata’ hews to the shape and plot of the original, Ms. Harris has given it a wry, worldly, distinctly British flavor” – <I.New York[/i]

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