Marathon reading of War & Peace begins in Russia

Russia has started a marathon live reading of Leo Tolstoy’s famous novel War & Peace. During the 60-hour broadcast, 1300 public figures including actors, athletes, politicians and even a cosmonaut from the International Space Station are taking part.

War and peace by Leo Tolstoy. Image by smlp.co.uk / CC BY 2.0

It’s also happening in various locations around Russia including Tolstoy’s country estate at Yasnaya Polyana near Moscow, where a large part of the novel was written. The reading is broadcast live on Russian national TV, radio and online at  voinamir.com. It’s planned to last until Friday, with one of the novel’s four volumes read each day. The project is part of Russia’s Year of Literature. Read more: abc.net.au