One hundred years after his death, Tolstoy still inspires controversy with his notoriously complex narrative strategies. This original book explores how and why Tolstoy has mystified interpreters and offers a new look at his most famous works of fiction.

Justin Weir is professor of Slavic languages and literatures, Harvard University. His previous work includes The Author as Hero: Self and Tradition in Bulgakov, Pasternak, and Nabokov.

"This book takes its place among the work of the most influential Tolstoy scholars."--Gary Saul Morson, author of ""Anna Karenina" in Our Time: Seeing More Wisely"--Gary Saul Morson