Leo Tolstoy Books, Quotes, Biography, Novels
Leo Tolstoy (Count Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy, 1828–1910) was a Russian novelist, short-story writer, and moral philosopher widely regarded as one of the greatest writers of realist fiction. His two longest novels, War and Peace and Anna Karenina, are routinely ranked among the finest novels ever written.
Tolstoy was born on September 9, 1828 (New Style) at the family estate of Yasnaya Polyana in Tula province, south of Moscow. He came from high Russian aristocracy; his mother, Princess Mariya Volkonskaya, died before he turned two, and his father, Count Nikolai Ilyich Tolstoy (a Napoleonic Wars veteran), died in 1837. Relatives raised him, with his cousin Tatyana Yergolskaya exerting the strongest influence.
He attended Kazan University but left without a degree and educated himself. After a dissolute youth marked by gambling debts, he joined the army in the Caucasus with his brother Nikolai and later fought in the Crimean War at Sevastopol. Those experiences produced his early successes: the autobiographical trilogy Childhood, Boyhood, and Youth (1852–56) and Sevastopol Sketches.
In 1862 he married 18-year-old Sophia (Sonya) Andreyevna Behrs. They had 13 children (eight survived to adulthood). The first decade of marriage was relatively stable and creatively productive; Sonya copied and edited manuscripts, including multiple drafts of War and Peace. Tolstoy wrote his two masterpieces at Yasnaya Polyana during this period.
After Anna Karenina he underwent a profound spiritual crisis. He rejected the Russian Orthodox Church, embraced a form of Christian anarchism emphasizing nonviolence, simplicity, and service to peasants, and became a vegetarian and pacifist. His later writings mix fiction with moral and religious essays. He clashed with his wife over his desire to renounce copyrights and live more ascetically.
In October 1910, at age 82, he left home seeking solitude. He fell ill with pneumonia and died of heart failure on November 20 at the Astapovo railway station. The event drew intense press attention.
Tolstoy’s later philosophy influenced figures such as Mahatma Gandhi. He spent most of his life at Yasnaya Polyana, which is now a museum.
Leo Tolstoy Most Popular Books
War and Peace (1865–69) – Sweeping historical novel of Napoleon’s 1812 invasion of Russia, interweaving five aristocratic families with philosophical reflections on history, free will, and war. Often cited as the defining example of the novel form.
Anna Karenina (1875–77) – Tolstoy called this his first “true novel.” It contrasts Anna’s tragic adulterous affair with the more grounded search for meaning of the landowner Levin (partly autobiographical). Famous opening line: “All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” Many consider it his most perfect work.
The Death of Ivan Ilyich (1886) – Novella about a conventional judge confronting terminal illness and the emptiness of his respectable life. Compact, psychologically acute, and frequently recommended as the best entry point to Tolstoy.
Resurrection (1899) – His last long novel. A nobleman seeks redemption after recognizing his role in a woman’s downfall. Strong social critique of the justice system and late Tolstoyan moral vision.
The Cossacks (1863) – Early novella drawn from his Caucasus army years: a young aristocrat’s encounter with Cossack life, love, and nature. Energetic and less preachy than later work.
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