Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
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Book Reviews of Anna Karenina
Book Review: Anna Karenina
Summary: 5 Stars
I have to say, I don't think I've come up against more outcry against a book than with Anna Karenina--and I've read some controversial stuff. Everyone--and I mean everyone who I discussed this book with ragged on it; even people who hadn't read it had something bad to say. I feel like it's a cultural norm to dislike this book; it's all well and good for those who have actually read it and formed opinions, but as for the ones who haven't read it--well, I was impressed by their adamant dislike.
Well, I am going to be insanely uncool and come out with it--I liked Anna Karenina. Heck, I loved it. I think it is a beautiful book with characters that come alive in the way you would expect--if not demand--of great literature. I missed the characters once the book was over and thought about it for days. Tolstoy took this story and made it beautifully real, and I applaud him for it.
I've read several other of Tolstoy's short stories, as well as Childhood, Boyhood, and Youth, and with the exception of Childhood I haven't found the same abandon that I found in Anna Karenina, the same indulgence in character. Though his other works are good--classics for a reason, all--they just don't draw me in the same way as Anna Karenina; I don't find myself accidentally investing all my time into the stories, so caught up in the fiction that I have to forcibly recall reality.
I know that Anna Karenina isn't meant for everyone just as I know that Russian Literature isn't for everyone. Well, Anna Karenina is a prime example of Russian Lit, which makes me love it all the more and makes some others run for the hills. It is very verbose. The characters are all full of grand ideas, and all of these ideas are expounded at one point or another. I love this--it's a love I picked up with Dostoevsky and have brought to other Russian Lit--but for those who don't, Anna Karenina is not the book for them. For those that don't mind it, however, or who even appreciate it like me, Anna Karenina is well worth the read (a must read, even). I'm glad I read it, and now consider it one of my favorite books.
Book Review: One of my TOP 25 Books of the Decade
Summary: 5 Stars
I've spent much of the past ten years reviewing books that I've read and enjoyed. Most all publications have some value to them. Once in a great while you run across a book that literally takes your breath away. I had just finished watching a television special on Melissa Etheridge, read an interesting story about Jordan Bratman and then replayed the most recent Grammy Awards. I became a little bored and decided that I would pick up Anna Karenina and read the final 2 chapters. I'd been saving this time for a special moment in my life and this just happened to be the right timing. It didn't take me long to read the book, as I was totally engulfed in the story and found myself lost in another world. After reading the final two chapters I wrote a 4 page review and essay on the book and went online and purchased 5 more copies to give as gifts to my neighbors. They arrived today and this is why I've found myself on Amazon.com to write this review. After reading over 5000 books, over a period of about 15 years, this book ranks as NUMBER 7 on my list. I'd suggest that everyone who has some extra time read this incredible journey. I'd give this 6 Stars (on a 5 Star scale)-and I rarely ever find a book or movie that moves me as much as this one did. May you enjoy this book as much as I did and may you share it with others. This morning as neighbor left me a note that said, "Peter Cannice, thank you for giving me a gift that I will cherish for the rest of my life"! I'm delighted, from the bottom of my heart, that I could make someones day a little more special with the great book. Enjoy each and every page. It may take some time to get through this great work of art, but the time you spend will be well worth the journey-I promise you that.
Peter V. Cannice
You can email me at HorsePete@aol.com if you would like additional discussion of this book or any of the others that I've read and rated for others.
Peter Vincent Cannice
Scottsdale, Arizona
Book Review: "Anna Karenina"...Tolstoy's masterpiece!
Summary: 5 Stars
A wonderful story...well told!
Some potential *SPOILERS* to follow...
While this book was large and daunting in size, I nonetheless found this tale, (set in mid/late 19th century Russia), fascinating and easy to read. It is the story of the rich and bored (and somewhat insecure) upper crust of Moscow's and St. Petersburg's society. The story starts off somewhat benignly but gradually becomes more involved as the characters become more exposed, showing all too common human frailties and weaknesses. The primary tale is one of an intense, emotional relationship (involving three people), while the secondary story deals with another man's own set of vulnerabilities and shortcomings as he struggles to find himself within the confines of his personal life, his work and his place in society.
Tolstoy, because of this writing skills, has the ability to make his characters come alive and become indelibly etched in the readers' psyche (in mine at least), and even more impressive is the fact, that little appears to have been lost by the effects of translation. I found myself (even without the book) frequently reflecting on the ever changing relationships between main characters (Anna, her lover Vronsky and her husband Alexie on one hand and Levin, Kitty, Stepan, and Dolly on the other).
The only area of this book that I found a little slow was some Tolstoy's philosophical musings (through Levin) towards the end of the novel; however the overall quality of the entire book easily puts it into the "classic" category. 5 Stars.
P.S. Kudos to both Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky for their incredible translation of this startling work; it's hard to believe that so much of the emotional quality of the original manuscript was retained (and with such easy readability), through this process.
R. Nicholson
Book Review: The greatest novel ever written?
Summary: 5 Stars
Just to give into the cliche, I have to state that I believe Anna Karenina may very well be one of the greatest novels ever written...Of course I have so many books ahead of me to read that I can't say this for certain, but there are several reasons why this book deserves all of its acclaim.
Generally the thing that sets Tolstoy apart from other writers is his clear love for his characters. We learn to accept and love them as though they were our real friends and family members--we see their flaws and sigh at their mistakes, but in the end we want what is best for them. Tolstoy knows how to give his novels a certain sweetness and innocence without giving the impression of naivete. The very first line of the novel discusses the idea of "happy" versus "unhappy" families, and throughout the novel he interlaces descriptions of great happiness with descriptions of great sadness--in short, he shows us life as really is. Although Anna meets a tragic end and we as readers see many of the darkest sides of human nature in this novel, when I think of Anna Karenina, I do not necessarily think of a tragedy because of all the wonderful, beautifully written moments in the story.
Continuing on this line of Anna Karenina being more than a tragedy, the novel is great because it is more than about just Anna--Tolstoy shows us the lives of Levin, Kitty and tons of other characters. This is one of the reasons that Anna is so much better than Flaubert's Madame Bovary. There is a richness and a sense of bigness that is just not easy to find in any other work.
Anna Karenina is a difficult book to read, and there were times when I put it down for weeks on end, but when I got to the home stretch I never wanted it to end -- the true mark of a masterpiece. Anna Karenina is not a book to be taken up lightly, but it will change your life if you let it.
Book Review: So much more than a great tragic romance
Summary: 5 Stars
This is one of the great books. It works so well on so many levels. It is great realist fiction but it also paved the way for the modern psychological novel. The writing is masterful as Tolstoy alters the tone of the novel to reflect the thinking and actions of different characters. There are also recurring ideas and motifs, such as the infidelity of Stiva echoed on a much more serious level by his sister Anna, and the railway themes of arrivals and departures, beginnings and endings on their most metaphoric levels.
The 2 main protagonists are Anna Karenina, and Konstantin Levin, whose thoughts and actions mirror those of Tolstoy himself. Both are looking for love, but the loves are unique in aspect. What Anna seeks is emotional enrichment..a passion which is sorely missing in her marriage to Karenin but also unfortunately, can't be sustained in her affair with Vronsky. Levin seeks a love that will anchor his life, give it meaning and purpose. Levin seeks the truth and while he rejects society's hypocrisy, learns to adapt and function with it as he discovers a deeper meaning to his existence. Anna can't face the truth, and is victimized by that hypocrisy. She ultimately finds her existence to be empty and meaningless. The war that was waged within her, between morality and passion, between hope and despair, between the forces of light and darkness, eventually becomes too much to bear on her own.
ANNA KARENINA is the literary equivalent of a great tragic opera. There is also much more to this novel. Much of Tolstoy's philosophy can be found here. His thoughts on Russian class structure, culture, religion, sociology , politics, and agronomy can be found in this novel. To get further insight into that thinking I suggest reading Tolsoy's Confession, which was written shortly after the publication of this work.