Childhood, Boyhood, Youth

The artistic work of Leo Tolstoy has been described as "nothing less than one tremendous diary kept for over fifty years." This particular "diary" begins with Tolstoy's first published work,CHILDHOOD, which was written when he was only 23. A semi-autobiographical work, it recounts two days in the childhood of 10-year-old Nikolai Irtenev, recreating vivid impressions of people, place and events with the exuberant perspective of a child enriched by the ironic retrospective understandng of an adult. BOYHOOD and YOUTH soon followed, and Tolstoy was launched on the literary career that would bring him immortality. This trilogy provides an indispensable introduction to Tolstoy's literary method and his major preoccupation--love, morality and the avoidance of violence. His mastery as a story-teller survives both translation and the passage of time to delight modern readers of every age.