A GOOD DEATH: A LESSON FROM TOLSTOY

In my opinion, Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace is the best book ever written. And I will stand by that until someone convinces me otherwise. It's one of those books that's intimidating to think about, but one that is well worth the read. It has, and will continue to stand the test of time.

And one reason I think it holds this title is because it is a primer in every type of encounter -- of war and of peace (as the title suggests), of romances and of breakups, of births and of deaths. It is this fi...