Anna Karenina (Oprah's Book Club)

I do think the story line is good. However it is way too wordy. The words were beautifully written but I tired of them & it was boring because of it. I am a quick reader but I had a hard time pushing thru it.

I won't say "Don't purchase this book," because different people have different tastes. This wasn't my taste. I read this right after reading "Pride and Prejudice," and the period and focus on class and society has me fatigued.

I appreciate the treatment of important axiological and theoretical issues in the piece by Tolstoy. He discusses social science, philosophy, politics, economics, religion. In that sense, the book was a feast for me. And he treated as many perspectives in which he was versed with great respect. One can't read this book and not walk away more intelligent.

But my feeling while reading most of this book was one of, "Christ, get on with it." Unfortunately, I was saying this through something I actually appreciated; I appreciated his attention to interpersonal relationships and intrapersonal reasoning about these relationships.

In short, there are lots of things I appreciate. I appreciate mechanics, but I wouldn't read an 850 page Chilton's manual.

An excellent new translation of the Tolstoy classic; Pevear and Volokhonsky have given the novel a fresh, new feeling. I have read other translations several times in the past, but reading this version was a rediscovery of a Tolstoy novel that explores the many facets of love among the Russian artistocracy.

How can anyone argue with Virginia Woolf, who believed that Tolstoy was one of the world's greatest novelists?

I agree with her in part. Anna K is a significant work of art. But, with all due respect to Tolstoy, it's too long to be a "novel". Anna K was actually written and published in small installments for a magazine, over a 4 year period. It is meant to be digested as small savory morels, over a long period of time. So, if you think that you are going to finish this in a few days or even weeks, don't be fooled! It took me a year. Most college courses that require this novel to be read, do so over a 12-16 week period.

I recommend this classic novel for those who want to know more about Russian culture during the life and times of Tolstoy. If you are not a seasoned reader, don't be convinced by the critics who hail this to be the "greatest novel ever written", or by the other reviewers who rave on and on about how they "can't put it down". Most people run out of patience when they approach the novel from that perspective. It mostly appeals to readers who have a vested interest in Russian culture, or who are reading classics for the sake of reading classics.

I appreciate Tolstoy's depiction of country life as far more wholesome and preferable to city life. The reason that this is a classic, is because of it's cultural significance. You will understand Tolstoy's point of view on some key political and philosophical issues during his lifetime, such as the societal roles of serfs versus Russian aristocrats, education reform, and women's rights.

At first, it was challenging to learn to read the names of the Russian characters...Anna Arkadyevna Karenina, Count Alexei Kirillovich Vronsky, Prince Stepan Arkadyevitch Oblonsky,Darya Alexandrovna Oblonskaya, Alexei Alexandrovich Karenin, Konstantin Dmitrievitch Levin, Ekaterina Alexandrovna Shcherbatskaya, Lydia Ivanovna, Countess Vronskaya , Sergei Alexeyitch Karenin, and the list goes on. But, there is a helpful audio guide online that can help you to learn the pronouciation.

the book is a great book even though it has fallen apart piece by piece during my read