This powerful novel follows the Melekhov family, Cossacks with Turkish ancestry, as life along the Don is impacted first by WWI and then by the death of the Tsar. Beautifully detailed scenes of the natural world are followed by episodes of harrowing violence. The author does not shy away from portraying the evils that men do to one another, particularly in times of war. Still, I am glad to have read this extraordinary, memorable book.