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A review by fbahram
Whatever happened to Anna K. by Irina Reyn
5.0
Words fall short in describing the gripping writing style of Irina Reyn.
I had no expectation of this book when I first ordered it and this was before I read Leo Tolstoy's Anna K. With the story of Anna K in Irina's beautiful words, I was captivated from the first page, from the opening sentence, to the very last page. She knows so well how to tell a story, how to draw you in, how to draw such vivid images of the characters in this book. Anna is self-doomed - she lives in the past and she longs for her passing youth and beauty. She loves David, I think, not so much for David and only David, as for the idea of David, or rather, idea of a handsome American man loving her for her mesmerizing beauty.
Oh the gripping story of the sexy, the sophisticated, the elegant Anna. The longings and yearnings of Anna for so much: for lost opportunities, for passage of time and her fading youth and beauty, for her home in Russia, for her Mr. Darcy, her Heathcliff or her Romeo in her life. Irina pointedly describes these longings. These are the essential elements that make up the complex Anna K. Never has my own longing for the years gone by and fear of the few remaining ones in fleet been better articulated. I loved Anna at once because I could immediately identify with her on all levels.
Of all her yearnings, Anna K’s longest struggle is with time, that voice that beckons us to hurry and slow down at the same time, and never lets up, no matter what blow we suffer in this world and what tragedies befall us. It ticks away indefinitely. I can relate acutely to Anna’s emotions with time, as Reyn writes “Her relationship with time, once so affectionate, lovingly doled out on the abacus, was now openly hostile. How could there be no going back? Anna thought.” (pg.167)
In this context, we see Anna’s constant agony in dealing with the reality of our finite time on this earth. This subtle quiet passing of the weeks, months, and years – and the older we get, the more distinctly we remember our childhood and more tightly we long to revive and relive our youth. It is the trick we play with ourselves by thinking that 35 is really awfully young when we pass the mark whereas the same age seemed awfully old when our parents reached it – not a place we could see ourselves anytime soon.
The slow onset of attraction, which does not materialize further, between Lev and Anna, happens at the very end. Reyn develops her two complex characters, Lev and Anna, all the while in parallel and separately. Anna by now has built imaginary doubts about David’s love and devotion and feels ever so alienated by her world. Lev, in utter loneliness for not communicating with his own Vasilisa, feels disgust and lust towards Anna. They have a brief encounter towards the very end of Anna’s story. That is the end of Anna Karenina’s story. Why does there have to be an end to every story?
For all her beauty and grace, Anna feels unloved and insecure. She is wanted and envied by all, and yet she feels threatened in her love affair to David. David who knows Anna is the only woman for her. The unexpressed thoughts, the unspoken words, they steal Anna away from us as much as her own illusions about life and happiness.
I finished this book in 48 hours. I cannot recommend it highly enough. A bow of praise and gratitude for Irina. May she write many more books in the future.
I had no expectation of this book when I first ordered it and this was before I read Leo Tolstoy's Anna K. With the story of Anna K in Irina's beautiful words, I was captivated from the first page, from the opening sentence, to the very last page. She knows so well how to tell a story, how to draw you in, how to draw such vivid images of the characters in this book. Anna is self-doomed - she lives in the past and she longs for her passing youth and beauty. She loves David, I think, not so much for David and only David, as for the idea of David, or rather, idea of a handsome American man loving her for her mesmerizing beauty.
Oh the gripping story of the sexy, the sophisticated, the elegant Anna. The longings and yearnings of Anna for so much: for lost opportunities, for passage of time and her fading youth and beauty, for her home in Russia, for her Mr. Darcy, her Heathcliff or her Romeo in her life. Irina pointedly describes these longings. These are the essential elements that make up the complex Anna K. Never has my own longing for the years gone by and fear of the few remaining ones in fleet been better articulated. I loved Anna at once because I could immediately identify with her on all levels.
Of all her yearnings, Anna K’s longest struggle is with time, that voice that beckons us to hurry and slow down at the same time, and never lets up, no matter what blow we suffer in this world and what tragedies befall us. It ticks away indefinitely. I can relate acutely to Anna’s emotions with time, as Reyn writes “Her relationship with time, once so affectionate, lovingly doled out on the abacus, was now openly hostile. How could there be no going back? Anna thought.” (pg.167)
In this context, we see Anna’s constant agony in dealing with the reality of our finite time on this earth. This subtle quiet passing of the weeks, months, and years – and the older we get, the more distinctly we remember our childhood and more tightly we long to revive and relive our youth. It is the trick we play with ourselves by thinking that 35 is really awfully young when we pass the mark whereas the same age seemed awfully old when our parents reached it – not a place we could see ourselves anytime soon.
The slow onset of attraction, which does not materialize further, between Lev and Anna, happens at the very end. Reyn develops her two complex characters, Lev and Anna, all the while in parallel and separately. Anna by now has built imaginary doubts about David’s love and devotion and feels ever so alienated by her world. Lev, in utter loneliness for not communicating with his own Vasilisa, feels disgust and lust towards Anna. They have a brief encounter towards the very end of Anna’s story. That is the end of Anna Karenina’s story. Why does there have to be an end to every story?
For all her beauty and grace, Anna feels unloved and insecure. She is wanted and envied by all, and yet she feels threatened in her love affair to David. David who knows Anna is the only woman for her. The unexpressed thoughts, the unspoken words, they steal Anna away from us as much as her own illusions about life and happiness.
I finished this book in 48 hours. I cannot recommend it highly enough. A bow of praise and gratitude for Irina. May she write many more books in the future.