9.57k reviews for:

Anna Karenina-Vol II

Leo Tolstoy

3.97 AVERAGE

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes
challenging reflective slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes
challenging reflective slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes
challenging emotional reflective slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Finally finished Anna karenina. After a reading slump and picking up (and dropping)  at least 5 other books in between. The book revolves around the nobility and specifically the tragic affair of the woman after whom the book is named. What I liked best about the book is the fact that it's an insight into Tolstoys view of humanity and his internal philosophical debate. Tolstoys characters always have a conscience, a lot of times, unrealistically optimistically so. No character is inherently bad or good. They're just human. Gives a lot of room to choose your own antagonist. I absolutely loved the book and the prose, however it is a slow paced read.
challenging emotional hopeful slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Nie mogę tego ocenić. Ta książka to śmietnik, sinusoida jakości i emocji.

Części o życiu elity - jak zwykle piękne, rosyjska telenowela, to co lubię najbardziej. Ale bardzo ich mało. W ogóle tej Annie Kareninie zapomniał autor o Annie Kareninie. Postać Anny jest napisana po macoszemu i prawie jej w książce nie ma. Zniknęła, głównie w filozoficznych wywodach jednej z postaci (Levin), która zdaje się być po prostu Tołstojem. I ta cała książka to tylko pretekst do chaotycznych wywodów o Bogu i sensie życia wg Tołstoja, przetykana irytującymi pogadankami politycznymi, obrzydliwymi opisami kobiet (jesteśmy tylko plotkującymi, płytkimi naczyniami do rodzenia dzieci, ja rozumiem „takie czasy”, ale to jest pas-kud-ne) i pięknymi opisami zwykłych dni.

A w skrócie:
Fuj,
ble,
Rozmyślania dziada,
och ach jak pięknie!,
O, Anna, zapomniałam, że to miała być książka o Tobie,
Nieee, znowu rozmyślania tego dziada
x100
challenging emotional reflective medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Love u Anna K
slow-paced
Loveable characters: No

Reading a classic like this is a major endeavor, and there is plenty to consider in it, but I was profoundly disappointed and annoyed with so many aspects of it. The underlying classist perspective gave the entire book  an intense myopia. the lack of conversational development despite the length was insanely frustrating- I’m thinking of how often he describes someone as telling a few good jokes without actually writing any down-, the general soap opera tone. And the underlying thesis?: Just get married and follow God and you will be content. In fact class inequality and feminism are ruining humanity. I’m not saying don’t read it, but maybe your experience will be better if you don’t expect as much as I did.