My first read of Tolstoy, and a lovely book overall. Tolstoy never ceases to provide intimate details of setting and character when they are most appropriate and occasionally sublime. Nevertheless, I was disappointed to find that he undermines this story with a particularly superficial appraisal of the place of Christianity in 19th century Russia. This is a beautiful read and one I recommend heartily for an introduction to pre-Revolutionary Russia, early communist sentiment, and human redemption.