Anna Karenina (Penguin Clothbound Classics) Hardcover – September 30, 2014

It seems pointless to add my voice to the large chorus of reviewers judging "Anna Karenina" a classic (it is). So why is the book worth reading 150 or so years after it was written? As a contemporary American, I'm struck by the vividness of the characters, how alive and relevant they feel. Partly this is due to an able translation, but overall it's a testament to Tolstoy's greatness. He wrote plainly, but his powers of observation were extraordinary. (There are a couple moments where he puts himself in the mind of a dog.) Not only did he describe characters like Vronsky, Anna, Levin, Kitty, or Dolly in ways that brought them to life, but he gave each one contradictions that made them human. None is perfect. Anna enters into an adulterous affair with Vronsky. Yes, times have changed; people would condemn her far less today. She was stuck in a loveless marriage to a much-older man. However, Tolstoy frames her circumstances so well--she's a part of upper-class Russian society where marriages are still practically arranged, and is shunned so completely for bucking societal norms--that modern readers understand her ultimate desperation. This is a big book, though, over 800 pages, and only partially about Anna. And there are a few sections that sag for modern readers. (I'm recalling a lengthy snipe hunt.) Tolstoy jumps from character to character. It's a portrait not just of Anna's life but of Russian society of the 1860's. In that way, it's as much a historical document as is "The Great Gatsby." The upper class is starting to sense the end of Russian nobility, the rise of the merchant class. There are even some, like Levin, who sympathize with the peasants. It's a remarkable novel in the way it presages the revolution many years later. The book will demand your full attention. There are many characters. The main characters all have servants, etc. And the characters are called by different names depending on the context (formal, familiar). Themes? Do not question one's circumstances. Questioning religion or one's own feelings of love can only lead to depression or worse. Anna gives up almost everything to follow her impulses. "Anna" includes a heartbreaking scene where she sees her son for the last time--one of the strongest scenes I've read anywhere in literature.

Great book and great translation. Only qualm is the details on the cover flake off and the page holder frays.

This book is in the top 5 books I've ever read. Tolstoy takes a complex theme, love, and teases it out using two different characters to embody two different views on love. Then he takes those views to their fruition. Anna Karenina is one perspective on love, and Nikolai Levin is another. They both have obstacles that they overcome, and both have a surprising ending. I loved it. I'll read and reread this book for a lifetime.Just as JRR Tolkien is extremely thorough and complex in his weaving of an external world, Tolstoy weaves an intricate and complex web of inner world. One feels as if these characters are more than just fiction, and may end up befriending certain characters, and resenting others. When factoring in the sheer number of characters, this book takes on a the status of a psychological monolithic epic whose main subject is love, and the many interpretations thereof. POTENTIAL SPOILER WARNING: If you've never read this book just skip to the next paragraph. Tolstoy reaches into the mind of an adulterer, an atheist, a homosexual stuck in a heterosexual marriage, the christian believer, the narcissist, drug addict, whore, priest. There's almost nobody that you can think of that isn't represented in this book!SPOILERS OVER: The translation is fantastic! Very poetic. There are moments where Tolstoy discusses modern Russian politics in general, but they don't last more than 30 pages, so just plow through those, and don't get discouraged. The light of Tolstoy's brilliance returns to those who persevere.Full disclosure: I read the entire synopsis of this book on Wikipedia before I ever decided to read this book. At the time I had thought I'd never read it, so spoiling the ending wouldn't be terrible. 2 hours later (that's how long I spent on Wikipedia reading about it), I was so enchanted I decided to read the book. As a result, I wasn't reading it for the story, I was reading it for it's poetry, and depth. That also gave me hope and understanding when plodding through the slow(-ish) sections of the book.

Yet to read, but excited