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laurenr4444's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
loonatrum's review against another edition
5.0
Just perfection. This book has evoked something in me, something I couldn't explain before and Tolstoy put it into words. His way of creating life-like characters and embellishing their personality with such immaculate prose is beyond me...The story is deeply rich, raw, flawed, tragic, bittersweet and I could not wish for this story to be crafted differently. This book scratched itches in my brain that have, no matter what, always been unanswered. Until now. And the ending? I'm not quite sure if my heart clenches at the thought of it's torrential tragedy OR if it simply clenches at the thought of leaving behind this humane habitat of realness that Tolstoy created with all its pain and passion. Either way, let it be sure—someday I shall return to it.
anna_lee1404's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
sophiell's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.25
stoleyourfoodinthelibrary's review against another edition
This book was a meeting that could have been an email.
dreiac's review against another edition
2.0
Not sure what happened here but, apart from the bits about existentialism, overall I did not enjoy the story in this book. I found myself zoning out on some parts, mostly those about Imperial Russian society and their events, along with their gossip, shallowness and prejudice; and the somewhat extensive bouts of farming knowledge. Throughout the book I also had the sense that it’s either all or nothing - some parts are incredibly tedious (and perhaps unnecessary) whilst others were full of drama. There’s no middle ground. Most of the characters are also very hard to like to the point where I felt the urge to bitch slap them on one or two occasions.
I don’t know... Perhaps I missed the mark, had different expectations, or wasn’t in the right frame of mind. Perhaps in the future, when I read it again it will make more sense, and I’ll be able to appreciate it, but for now, it’s a no. Wouldn’t like to discourage others from reading it though, since this is a highly rated book amongst the more literarily knowledgeable folks.
I don’t know... Perhaps I missed the mark, had different expectations, or wasn’t in the right frame of mind. Perhaps in the future, when I read it again it will make more sense, and I’ll be able to appreciate it, but for now, it’s a no. Wouldn’t like to discourage others from reading it though, since this is a highly rated book amongst the more literarily knowledgeable folks.
ingread27's review against another edition
3.0
This is a long book. Captain Obvious. But seriously. Long.
I listened to the audiobook narrated by Maggie Gyllenhaal - for 36 hours.
In modern writing, an editor would have stripped down entire sections, without explaining every single thing, every farm implement, every nuance of day-to-day Russia. I actually wish there was a modern re-write as the concept is very cool. For those interested in philosophy, politics, and the like, there would be much to unpack here. Too much for my liking. And yet, certain themes were fascinating.
I especially enjoyed the final few chapters with Levin.
Overall, I'm glad I listened to it, but it was a slog many a day.
Maggie did a pretty good job on the audio, but her narration of conversations was painful on many occasions due to inconsistency of tone from one character to the next. It was frankly annoying at times. And yet she did a great job on other conversations.
All in all, passable but hard to recommend to anyone that they should read this book.
I listened to the audiobook narrated by Maggie Gyllenhaal - for 36 hours.
In modern writing, an editor would have stripped down entire sections, without explaining every single thing, every farm implement, every nuance of day-to-day Russia. I actually wish there was a modern re-write as the concept is very cool. For those interested in philosophy, politics, and the like, there would be much to unpack here. Too much for my liking. And yet, certain themes were fascinating.
I especially enjoyed the final few chapters with Levin.
Overall, I'm glad I listened to it, but it was a slog many a day.
Maggie did a pretty good job on the audio, but her narration of conversations was painful on many occasions due to inconsistency of tone from one character to the next. It was frankly annoying at times. And yet she did a great job on other conversations.
All in all, passable but hard to recommend to anyone that they should read this book.
tcmoritz's review against another edition
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
elisloony's review against another edition
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5