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Tolstoy: The Death of Ivan Ilyich & Master and Man Audiobook
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(3.07) - 316 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
In these two famous short novels, Leo Tolstoy takes readers to the brink of despair. At the end of life worldly ambition offers no consolation for the spiritually empty soul. But Tolstoy is the master of themes of redemption. He turns his morbid topic into hope, leading toward spiritual awakening. Tolstoy offers his readers a lifetime of perspective on a most human subject, death. // Tolstoy's The Death of Ivan Illyich is a small book with singular depth of insight. The book was published in 1886, breaking a nine-year literary silence after the publication of Anna Karenina. It is considered to be one of the great explorations of death and dying in all of Western Literature. No author in so few words summons so many emotions into the reader's soul. This masterpiece is here paired with another Tolstoy short novels, Master and Man, which too examines the human response to mortality. Together these two stories will ultimately offer encouragement to the spiritually hungry. // Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910) is considered by many to be the greatest novelist in Western Literature. Several classic novels belong to his pen including War and Peace and Anna Karenina. In addition he wrote many short novels, including The Death of Ivan Illyich.
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"Spend time with a timeless author and Ivan Ilych, a human being dealing with the discontinuity of life when all he's known is the sameness. If you are able to put aside resistences to the subject of death, you will find much to identify with and think about long after the end. "
— Cheryl (5 out of 5 stars)
Tolstoy: The Death of Ivan Ilyich & Master and Man Listener Reviews
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" I'm pretty ambivalent about this one. It's short and easy to read but I didn't really connect in any significant way. "
— Angie, 12/21/2013 -
" 2 short stories of facing death, Ivan Ilyich suffers and seeks solice in first, liked 2nd better-- snowstorm strands rich landowner and peasant "
— Jennyreadsexcessively, 7/21/2013 -
" Great short story. Amazing how something written over 100 years ago can be so completely contemporary. "
— A.S., 1/4/2013 -
" i know he is a titan, but not a huge fan. he is far more depressing that dostoevsky. and his theology is whacked "
— Joe, 12/16/2012 -
" Master and Man is by far my favorite Tolstoy short story. Death of Ivan Ilyich is right up there as well. "
— MountainPoet, 12/12/2012 -
" "It could only be explained if one could say I hadn't lived as I should. But that is quite inadmissable.", he said to himself, remembering his law-abiding, correct, and proper life. "To accept that would be quite impossible," he said to himself... "There is no explanation!" "
— Joe, 12/10/2012 -
" I read the story of "Master and Man" within this compilation. It was a powerful and moving story of man's assumptions about power and what really matters in life. "
— Laura, 9/3/2012 -
" Only read Death of Ivan Ilyich "
— Amy, 11/13/2011 -
" Book club selection that I really didn't like. We only read Ivan Ilyich but the depression was overwhelming as I read. "
— Shauna, 10/16/2011 -
" A story of the ultimate sacrifice. "
— Daniel, 7/8/2011 -
" Might have fit me more in high school but is too dark for me right now. "
— Timm, 6/20/2011 -
" Good introduction to Leo Tolstoy. Felt almost like a prequel to "Anna Karenina" at times, but that is due to the time period, class and location of the novel. Another good book to get you thinking about how you want to live -- maybe before you are on your deathbed. "
— Denise, 5/30/2011 -
" Tolstoy lays out our lives. Reading this book made me not want to waste any moment of the rest of my life. "
— T, 5/18/2011 -
" Long short story or novella. My freshman lit project. Enjoyed every sentence. "
— Ctb, 5/17/2011 -
" Very well written short story and pretty sad "
— John, 4/25/2011 -
" First work by Tolstoy that I have read and already it has cemented his undeniable genius. The depth of characterization is incredible you'd be humbled and crushed immensely if you have ambitions of being a writer. "
— Kareef, 4/20/2011 -
" I can safely say this book changed my life. "
— Eric, 4/18/2011 -
" This was an interesting book on the process of one man's death. did make me want to read more of Tolstoy. "
— Joanne, 3/28/2011 -
" What is death? Why do we live? You can see Tolstoy wrestle with death in this book. A great read! "
— Trae, 3/25/2011 -
" It took a long, long time to die. "
— Eliana, 3/21/2011 -
" The paradox in this book is heartwrenching. It's a short story, so it's difficult to review without giving spoilers. My favorite Tolstoy. "
— Lynette, 3/18/2011 -
" Don't read the introduction before the book; it could ruin it. On the other hand, without a little knowledge of Tolstoy, I'd say all but the last pages are boring (sorry, Beth). "
— Andrew, 3/18/2011
About Leo Tolstoy
Leo Tolstoy (1828–1910) was born about two hundred miles from Moscow. His mother died when he was two, his father when he was nine. His parents were of noble birth, and Tolstoy remained acutely aware of his aristocratic roots, even when he later embraced doctrines of equality and the brotherhood of man. After serving in the army in the Caucasus and Crimea, where he wrote his first stories, he traveled and studied educational theories. In 1862 he married Sophia Behrs and for the next fifteen years lived a tranquil, productive life, finishing War and Peace in 1869 and Anna Karenina in 1877. In 1879 he underwent a spiritual crisis; he sought to propagate his beliefs on faith, morality, and nonviolence, writing mostly parables, tracts, and morality plays. Tolstoy died of pneumonia in 1910 at the age of eighty-two.
About Simon Vance
Simon Vance (a.k.a. Robert Whitfield) is an award-winning actor and narrator. He has earned more than fifty Earphones Awards and won the prestigious Audie Award for best narration thirteen times. He was named Booklist’s very first Voice of Choice in 2008 and has been named an AudioFile Golden Voice as well as an AudioFile Best Voice of 2009. He has narrated more than eight hundred audiobooks over almost thirty years, beginning when he was a radio newsreader for the BBC in London. He is also an actor who has appeared on both stage and television.