Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy

Anna Karenina

By Leo Tolstoy

  • Release Date: 1877-12-30
  • Genre: Classics
Score: 4.5
4.5
From 3,524 Ratings

Description

An Apple Books Classic edition.

“Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” Thus begins what many consider the world’s greatest novel. Leo Tolstoy originally published this sweeping saga in serial form beginning in 1875, portraying a vast swath of Russian life, from the fields worked by starving peasant farmers to the sitting rooms (and bedrooms) of privileged aristocrats.

Despite its epic nature, Anna Karenina is an intricate, intimate study of one woman’s downward spiral into tragedy. As Anna’s husband becomes increasingly absorbed in philosophical and political introspection, Tolstoy’s heroine grows weary of her life as a mother and wealthy man’s wife. Increasingly unsettled by the stark class differences she observes, Anna finds passion again in a forbidden affair with Count Vronsky. But can she overcome her obsessive concern with societal norms to find a measure of happiness?

Passion. Betrayal. Love. Revenge. Tolstoy’s classic has it all.

Reviews

  • Stands the test of time

    4
    By BrChildr
    I was shocked at how much I enjoyed this book and especially how it’s stuck with me. The storyline is still relevant after all these years and thought provoking. It’s interesting and rare for a book to have so many characters that are well developed and all relevant to the story. I found that a little hard to keep up with at first, but in the end it’s really what made the book so good.
  • A Journey of a Book

    3
    By Zayijn
    Originally I picked this up to read a classic and mostly to tell people I was reading Tolstoy, but after it was done, I was glad I read it. It was pretty dry and boring, but by part five out of eight, I was invested in finishing it — partly given to the fact that I felt so invested in the characters. Of course, with an 800+ page book, one does get to know characters pretty well. There were a lot of people in the book to keep track of at the beginning, but the important ones do get easier to remember. A good shock near the end, and hopefully one day I can get to ‘War and Peace’!
  • Anna Karenina

    5
    By Marywashington
    Very philosophical, with a humanistic recounting of Levin’s journey toward a rule book for life. Anna represents self-centered, narcissism leading to self-annihilation as its result. Kitty is the benevolent part of humanity as the good. Each character displays a different aspect of humanity.
  • The Best Yet

    5
    By rossandbeth
    My favorite book by one of my favorite Russian authors. The story asks and answers many questions we all have about life and the kinds of people we meet and know.
  • Must Read!

    5
    By LaLa Christine
    I am a huge fan of historical fiction and classic novels. This is, without a doubt, the most well written novel I have read! This is your ticket for a wonderful trip to late 19th century Russia.
  • Llv84

    5
    By llv84
    El libro es realmente impresionante, con justa razón es una obra maestra de la literatura universal. Nunca había leído nada de Tolstoi y me encantó. Al principio no me llamaba la atención por el tema de la infidelidad, pero abarca mucho más que solo este aspecto de la condición humana y de la familia.
  • What Else Could Possibly Be Said?

    5
    By Harrierflier
    It’s Tolstoy, so it’s great.
  • OK.

    2
    By Kweyman527
    This was an incredibly dry read, but worth it. The love stories entwined in the story take hold and keep you reading until the very end.
  • Anna Karnina

    5
    By M coldcuts
    So well written. Book of this earlier time period have substance. And character development. So much more substantial than more currently written books. There is a good reason why they are considered classics!!
  • Need to make citation friendly!!!

    4
    By Ash.S137
    The only complaint that I have is that this book cannot be cited which is a big issue for this broke college student who can now not cite a book that is the whole subject of her last research paper of her undergrad.

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