I can start by saying that I really enjoyed this book and Tolstoy really nailed it when it comes to conveying all the emotions each character expresses, making them all feel real (The ice skating scene where Levin acted awkward around Kitty was so relatable lol). I also love how he portrayed the aristocratic society of Russia, the fancy balls, the social dynamics and the way he presented the scandals and gossip happening within.
The story itself was truly a journey. Tolstoy built the characters up with deep psychological understanding, precisely capturing their desires, problems, and their emotional connections towards one another. Like Anna, for example, started off as a respected woman in the society but as her story progressed, and the consequences of her actions (like the affair she had with Vronsky) came into fruition, she spiraled into a world of jealousy and delusion which deteriorated her mentally and ultimately led to her suicide (at a train station too, where she first met Vronsky, this really impressed me for some reason). The way Tolstoy wrote it had me sympathizing for her, he made me understand her point of view, even though I found some of her actions quite questionable like her rejecting the divorce Karenin offered when he even said that he was willing to do whatever would make her happy, even willing to give up his son for it (if I remember this part correctly), but I guess it was just her emotions getting the best of her.
However, as much as I enjoyed the story, I'd be lying if I said this book had no flaws. When I first started reading, I initially assumed that it would be centered around Anna. And it kind of was I guess, but it just really surprised me how a huge portion of the book focuses on Levin, which isn't really that bad I guess, I like Levin's character, he's relatable, a socially awkward fellow who overthinks just about everything, like me. What disappointed me about Levin though (or the story in this case) was the amount of farming talks that didn't really tickle my fancy. I guess it was good to have some perspective on things like that, but for a book that seemed to focus on Russian aristocratic society during that era, I feel like Tolstoy went a bit too detailed when it came to the agricultural portion of the book,.
Another thing I'd like to mention was how disappointing the ending was. The build-up of Anna's story was really well-constructed and the suspense kept growing as Anna herself descends into an emotional and mental deterioration, but the moment she commits suicide, that was it. I guess we did get a glimpse of how it affected Vronsky and it obviously devastated him, but that was all there is to it. I expected part 8 to be all about her death and the reactions of certain characters, especially Karenin, their child Seyrozha (That was his name I think), Darya and even Kitty. But instead, it was like Anna served her purpose and was immediately set aside for Levin and his philosophical questionings and existential crisis, which isn't that bad in itself because I do kind of enjoy watching him contemplate about life, but still it sucked because it wasn't the ending I (or I assume everybody else) expected. Now that I mentioned Levin, anyone else feel like his brother's death was more explored than this?
This was also my first time reading Tolstoy so I'm not sure if this is his typical writing style but it left me heartbroken 🙁 I was deeply impressed by the emotional weight Anna’s character was carrying, but was left unsatisfied by how sudden she was set aside. But above all, I enjoyed the book. It was an adventure, a journey through the lives of unique and interesting characters and how they've progressed throughout the story. However, as I neared the ending, I couldn't help but feel really disappointed. The emotional momentum was built so intensely, but the final chapters didn’t quite deliver the ending I was hoping for.
So a question to those who've read the book, what did you think of the book after you've read it? I would really like to hear your opinions.
by RecordWell