Download Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of

Everyone thinks of
changing the world,
but no one thinks
of changing
himself.
Leo Tolstoy
Russian novelist
Лев Никола́евич Толсто́й (Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy, known in English as Leo
Tolstoy) was born in Russia on 9 September 1828. His parents were nobles, but
both died when he was young so he was brought up by relatives.
Tolstoy studied Law and Oriental Languages at Kazan University, but left partway through his studies. He was described as “both unable and unwilling to
learn” by the teachers there. In 1851, after running up gambling debts, he
joined the army with his brother.
Tolstoy married in 1862 and he and his wife had thirteen children. As was often
the case in those days, only eight survived childhood. He was happily married
for many years although in later life, as his views became more radical, he
rejected his privileged upbringing and inheritance, which caused tension with his
wife. He died of pneumonia in 1910.
Tolstoy is considered one of the giants of Russian literature, and his epic story
War and Peace, which was first published in 1869, is generally thought to be one
of the greatest novels ever written. The book tells the story of five families
from 1805 to the French invasion of Russia in 1812.
Click here for a (rather dated) trailer for the 1956 film adaptation.
Although not actually related to War and Peace, click here for a video of the
Independence Day fireworks on 4 July 2014 set to the 1812 Overture (a piece
of music written by fellow Russian composer Tchaikowsky, which deals with the
same war as Tolstoy’s novel).