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Anna Karenina
The must-have Pevear and Volokhonsky translation of one of the greatest Russian novels ever written
Described by William Faulkner as the best novel ever written and by Fyodor Dostoevsky as “flawless,” Anna Karenina tells of the doomed love affair between the sensuous and rebellious Anna and the dashing officer, Count Vronsky. Tragedy unfolds as Anna rejects her passionless marriage and thereby exposes herself to the hypocrisies of society. Set against a vast and richly textured canvas of nineteenth-century Russia, the novel's seven major characters create a dynamic imbalance, playing out the contrasts of city and country life and all the variations on love and family happiness.
While previous versions have softened the robust and sometimes shocking qualities of Tolstoy's writing, Pevear and Volokhonsky have produced a translation true to his powerful voice. This authoritative edition, which received the PEN Translation Prize and was an Oprah Book Club™ selection, also includes an illuminating introduction and explanatory notes. Beautiful, vigorous, and eminently readable, this Anna Karenina will be the definitive text for fans of the film and generations to come. This Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition also features French flaps and deckle-edged paper.
For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
Described by William Faulkner as the best novel ever written and by Fyodor Dostoevsky as “flawless,” Anna Karenina tells of the doomed love affair between the sensuous and rebellious Anna and the dashing officer, Count Vronsky. Tragedy unfolds as Anna rejects her passionless marriage and thereby exposes herself to the hypocrisies of society. Set against a vast and richly textured canvas of nineteenth-century Russia, the novel's seven major characters create a dynamic imbalance, playing out the contrasts of city and country life and all the variations on love and family happiness.
While previous versions have softened the robust and sometimes shocking qualities of Tolstoy's writing, Pevear and Volokhonsky have produced a translation true to his powerful voice. This authoritative edition, which received the PEN Translation Prize and was an Oprah Book Club™ selection, also includes an illuminating introduction and explanatory notes. Beautiful, vigorous, and eminently readable, this Anna Karenina will be the definitive text for fans of the film and generations to come. This Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition also features French flaps and deckle-edged paper.
For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
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Readers say *Anna Karenina* is a timeless classic praised for its deep exploration of human emotions, society, and spirituality. Tolstoy’s rich charac...
Book #52: Kelly's pick for our 10th Anniversary meeting, to discuss a classic. The meeting was to take place in Tallman State Park as COVID lockdown rules had lifted. The meeting never took place.
A magnificent and entwining read. Such a delicately and intricately weaved net of stories all working together and completely intertwined with other in the most seamless manner. A true master work and a treasurable read nonetheless.
This one has sat on my shelf for years. I had picked it up many times only to quickly replace it, fearful of the length. But, now having a Kindle, I tackled it, only to be distressed by the slow moving percentage at the bottom of the page. I was determined to finish it, and finish it I did! While it was a sweeping, epic tale of intellectual and physical love and pain, renewal and loss, it was also about a person's search for spirituality and the reason for being. Anna and Levin represented the two opposing sides in this journey. Anna, being self-centered and closed-minded to reality, and Levin being selfless and eager to uncover his truths. Tolstoy does a masterful job of creating characters that live and breathe. Anna is beautiful, maddening, enigmatic, and cruel. And Levin just made me want to be a farmer's wife.
I had to increase my rating from 3 to 4 stars because I finished this a month ago and I’m STILL thinking about what it all meant.
Though it was long, I can’t think of any part that should have been cut. One day I’ll be able to make sense of what Tolstoy was trying to impart with the different outcomes of the two protagonists.
Though it was long, I can’t think of any part that should have been cut. One day I’ll be able to make sense of what Tolstoy was trying to impart with the different outcomes of the two protagonists.
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