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3.97 AVERAGE
3.97 AVERAGE
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
but [life] has the unquestionable meaning of the good which it is in my power to put into it
dark
sad
slow-paced
This was the first Tolstoy book I read. I've heard that Tolstoy is a great writter so I had great expectations - summarizing this review - I was a little bit disapointed.
Not that I dind't liked the book, it just has too many ideas and feels like starting to read a lot of stories at once and just finishing one.
In general: I'm making this review after reading The Death of Ivan Ilyich which made me giving up on Tolstoy books. They might be great, but not for me.
*Spoiler Alert for the written below*
The book can be divided in two main stories/characters: Anna Karenina & Konstantin Levin. Having that said: the book would be greater if it was more foccused on just these two characters love stories.
To start with there are too many characters - at some point I lost myself of knowing who is who and what the relation between the other characters. It has has too many ideas explored and some of them kind seems to be left unfinished.
It starts with a parallel family story: Anna's brother family. It's not an interesting family story and I see it as just a link to connect the two main love stories. Actually this parallel story has not that much impact on Anna or Levin's lifes.
Then you have Levin's reflections (not life) about agriculture and other topics that are completely unnecessary for anyone's story in the book - I can't even remember the most part of his reflections.
To make it worst for Levin's side, there are his sibblings - 2 brothers and a sister. On the book we barely know of his sister, only that there are some issues Levin has to handle for her: ok with it. Related his two brothers: doesn't matter at all their stories, for real!
Kity's life story before marriage - for me it's the character that along with Anna's story, goes straight to the point on the book: no reflections on social, political, philosophical, whatever subject to be described: just what happens to her, the context how it happens and the feelings she develops towards that. That makes her more interesting than Levin's himself and you get to know enough of her without being bored or at some point lost.
Karenin story after Anna's affair: it is given too much significance for what actually represents on the whole picture. The same concerning the son they had together.
For the main stories:
Anna's love story: intresting and, as I said before, straight forward: no big reflections on anything. Although in the course of the story it refers that Anna is well instructed and looks forward to instruct herself better during her life, there are no bog reflections of her.Related Anna's story, the only thing I have to point is the way this ends for Vronsky: it seems unfinished. But anyway, he is a character for which I couldn't relate too much.
Levin's love story: more detailed and well explored than Anna's story and in the end a great closure of it. Basically the only story that leads to a concrete end and doesn't look unfinished.
At the end you can tell that these twon main stories are in there to be compared to each other: Anna's love story is superficial while Levin's love story is more intense.
Not that I dind't liked the book, it just has too many ideas and feels like starting to read a lot of stories at once and just finishing one.
In general: I'm making this review after reading The Death of Ivan Ilyich which made me giving up on Tolstoy books. They might be great, but not for me.
*Spoiler Alert for the written below*
The book can be divided in two main stories/characters: Anna Karenina & Konstantin Levin. Having that said: the book would be greater if it was more foccused on just these two characters love stories.
To start with there are too many characters - at some point I lost myself of knowing who is who and what the relation between the other characters. It has has too many ideas explored and some of them kind seems to be left unfinished.
It starts with a parallel family story: Anna's brother family. It's not an interesting family story and I see it as just a link to connect the two main love stories. Actually this parallel story has not that much impact on Anna or Levin's lifes.
Then you have Levin's reflections (not life) about agriculture and other topics that are completely unnecessary for anyone's story in the book - I can't even remember the most part of his reflections.
To make it worst for Levin's side, there are his sibblings - 2 brothers and a sister. On the book we barely know of his sister, only that there are some issues Levin has to handle for her: ok with it. Related his two brothers: doesn't matter at all their stories, for real!
Kity's life story before marriage - for me it's the character that along with Anna's story, goes straight to the point on the book: no reflections on social, political, philosophical, whatever subject to be described: just what happens to her, the context how it happens and the feelings she develops towards that. That makes her more interesting than Levin's himself and you get to know enough of her without being bored or at some point lost.
Karenin story after Anna's affair: it is given too much significance for what actually represents on the whole picture. The same concerning the son they had together.
For the main stories:
Anna's love story: intresting and, as I said before, straight forward: no big reflections on anything. Although in the course of the story it refers that Anna is well instructed and looks forward to instruct herself better during her life, there are no bog reflections of her.Related Anna's story, the only thing I have to point is the way this ends for Vronsky: it seems unfinished. But anyway, he is a character for which I couldn't relate too much.
Levin's love story: more detailed and well explored than Anna's story and in the end a great closure of it. Basically the only story that leads to a concrete end and doesn't look unfinished.
At the end you can tell that these twon main stories are in there to be compared to each other: Anna's love story is superficial while Levin's love story is more intense.
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Set aside some time for this one; it's a seriously long book. Although the book is called "Anna Karenina", Tolstoy spent a significant amount of time on a number of other characters.
slow-paced
Love is labour not a a retreat.
Tolstoy romantic epic is an anthropological success in exploring the layers of society. How our roles bind,control and free us as the people who choose or have to play them. Beginning after the upheaval of a marriage due to infidelity the novel goes on to appear as so much more, an enlightened excavation on the purpose of love. Is it for vanity? Security? Fulfillment? Joy? Power? Or all of the best aforementioned? That is the question Leo poses and answers through his deeply personalized and rich characters. Usually reading a book this thick with a cast as long as this one can be the recipe for confusion and frustration (see: my experience reading outlander) but Tolstoy is so precise and clear with a prose so gripping the facts stick with you through each subsequent chapter. I had no issue following along and actually relished the experience.
Didn't expect this to be so feminist. A book written by an 18th century nobleman about a woman who has an affair? I was expecting slut shaming, vitriol and basically 0 nuance. Boy was I wrong! He written some of the best female characters I've ever read. Lived in and so fully realized, it feels as if they weren't just figments from his head but flesh and blood historical figures that actually walked the earth at one time. Extremely vivid. Anna Karenina and Darya Alexandrovna were tied as my favorite characters. All their p.o.v's would have passages that would never leave me. Suffering and hopelessness never sounded so vivid as when it comes from their mouths
My least favorite are Levin (ofc ) and Stepan. Levin is so annoying and moody. This man is basically a 46yr old child who btw is the world's most frustrating hypocrite. He's so weird towards Kitty literally existing around people. He'd be happier if she was leashed to a room and existed only to carry his babies and give him compliments. Don't even want to get into his takes on landownership. This man gets owned in a debate by people who aren't any better than him because he thinks exploiting his workers (muziks) is a hill worth dying on. So to summarize he's a pedo control freak who hates unions and joy. And he's basically a Tolstoy self insert. If I may paraphrase Adam ,it's basically Tolstoy playing literary Sims AND I HAVEN'T BEEN UNABLE TO UNSEE IT!!!!!Levin is such wish fulfillment. From his mega stacks, happy ending, beautiful wife. Tolstoy was manifesting. It's like the girls he was writing for academic serious purposes and Levin was just for fun silly goofy lol's. Although that final paragraph at the end of part 8 was threatening to convert me to Christianity because of how exceptional it was. I do think people saying it's one of the best written paragraphs ever is insane as the end of part 7 IS LITERALLY RIGHT THERE!!! Or even those chapters where he gets all existential when working with the Muziks (I hope muzik isn't a slur because I've been using it all the time)
With Stepan it's a bit more difficult. His stupidity makes him confusing to hate. Not difficult just not as intense . He's the original himbo,he's just a Ken. It's weird they'll be moments where you'll catch yourself liking him until he thinks the most obscene thought ever conceived about his wife. Like "It even seemed to him that she, a worn–out, aged, no longer beautiful woman, not remarkable for anything, simple, merely a kind mother of a family, ought in all fairness to be indulgent. It turned out to be quite the opposite."
His wife is literally a year YOUNGER than him. Smh. It's as if he can be nice to any woman who isn't his wife because he's one of the rare few who actually stays loyal to Anna Karenina after her exile from high society.
This novel marks my fourth buddy read with my best friend Adam( @aziraphale's left shoe ) which made the whole experience so much better. Discussing opinions or reacting to lines or plot developments is one of the higlights of this experience, making it reminiscent of co watching a favorite show with someone you care about and getting lost in conversations that forget how to end. It's a godsend having someone to go rabid over Russian literature with.
This was also my first foray into Russian lit. Definitely willing to do it again.
Also finishing one of the greatest love stories ever ON valentines day? Iconic perhaps
Tolstoy romantic epic is an anthropological success in exploring the layers of society. How our roles bind,control and free us as the people who choose or have to play them. Beginning after the upheaval of a marriage due to infidelity the novel goes on to appear as so much more, an enlightened excavation on the purpose of love. Is it for vanity? Security? Fulfillment? Joy? Power? Or all of the best aforementioned? That is the question Leo poses and answers through his deeply personalized and rich characters. Usually reading a book this thick with a cast as long as this one can be the recipe for confusion and frustration (see: my experience reading outlander) but Tolstoy is so precise and clear with a prose so gripping the facts stick with you through each subsequent chapter. I had no issue following along and actually relished the experience.
Didn't expect this to be so feminist. A book written by an 18th century nobleman about a woman who has an affair? I was expecting slut shaming, vitriol and basically 0 nuance. Boy was I wrong! He written some of the best female characters I've ever read. Lived in and so fully realized, it feels as if they weren't just figments from his head but flesh and blood historical figures that actually walked the earth at one time. Extremely vivid. Anna Karenina and Darya Alexandrovna were tied as my favorite characters. All their p.o.v's would have passages that would never leave me. Suffering and hopelessness never sounded so vivid as when it comes from their mouths
My least favorite are Levin (ofc ) and Stepan. Levin is so annoying and moody. This man is basically a 46yr old child who btw is the world's most frustrating hypocrite. He's so weird towards Kitty literally existing around people. He'd be happier if she was leashed to a room and existed only to carry his babies and give him compliments. Don't even want to get into his takes on landownership. This man gets owned in a debate by people who aren't any better than him because he thinks exploiting his workers (muziks) is a hill worth dying on. So to summarize he's a pedo control freak who hates unions and joy. And he's basically a Tolstoy self insert. If I may paraphrase Adam ,it's basically Tolstoy playing literary Sims AND I HAVEN'T BEEN UNABLE TO UNSEE IT!!!!!Levin is such wish fulfillment. From his mega stacks, happy ending, beautiful wife. Tolstoy was manifesting. It's like the girls he was writing for academic serious purposes and Levin was just for fun silly goofy lol's. Although that final paragraph at the end of part 8 was threatening to convert me to Christianity because of how exceptional it was. I do think people saying it's one of the best written paragraphs ever is insane as the end of part 7 IS LITERALLY RIGHT THERE!!! Or even those chapters where he gets all existential when working with the Muziks (I hope muzik isn't a slur because I've been using it all the time)
With Stepan it's a bit more difficult. His stupidity makes him confusing to hate. Not difficult just not as intense . He's the original himbo,he's just a Ken. It's weird they'll be moments where you'll catch yourself liking him until he thinks the most obscene thought ever conceived about his wife. Like "It even seemed to him that she, a worn–out, aged, no longer beautiful woman, not remarkable for anything, simple, merely a kind mother of a family, ought in all fairness to be indulgent. It turned out to be quite the opposite."
His wife is literally a year YOUNGER than him. Smh. It's as if he can be nice to any woman who isn't his wife because he's one of the rare few who actually stays loyal to Anna Karenina after her exile from high society.
This novel marks my fourth buddy read with my best friend Adam( @aziraphale's left shoe ) which made the whole experience so much better. Discussing opinions or reacting to lines or plot developments is one of the higlights of this experience, making it reminiscent of co watching a favorite show with someone you care about and getting lost in conversations that forget how to end. It's a godsend having someone to go rabid over Russian literature with.
This was also my first foray into Russian lit. Definitely willing to do it again.
Also finishing one of the greatest love stories ever ON valentines day? Iconic perhaps
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Those who say this is the greatest novel of all time, have never read a good novel. The book has so many characters- two have the same first name?? It’s very hard to keep track of who is who. This book is about how everyone loves Anna- but she really isn’t that great of a character- she is so selfish. What I did enjoy about the book was learning about Russian politics and hearing how one of the characters goes from being agnostic to believing in Christ. I’m glad I read it but I will never read it again.