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Anna Karenina Read-A-Long Discussion


See my original post HERE.


PART ONE AND TWO


I have to admit, after starting to read this book, and seeing how long it is, I wondered why I bothered.... I am not crazy about infidelity, so the story itself is not one I would normally choose, but it's a classic. Now, I say to myself, yeah, I may not be into the story with all the cavorting and canoodling going on, but Leo Tolstoy sure knows how to tell a story. Whether you like brown or not, if Tolstoy described it in his eloquent way, you would all of a sudden want brown in your life. He's that good!

I'm with Steph too on the opening line being amazing! 

“Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.”

 How true does that ring to you?? I took 15 minutes reflecting on this opening line. No wonder it has taken me this long to get this far in the book.

So this is my first time reading this book, but I have seen the film with Greta Garbo in it. (1938-ish). I find it's alike but so different too. I am enjoying the words I read much better than ones expressed in dialogue from the film. I admit though, when I read Anna's parts it's hard not to visualize Greta. I am reading the link that was provided by Steph on the initial sign up, which is free for those catching this now, but couldn't tell you who translated it, I missed that part...

Anyone else having a crap time pronouncing these names? It's gotten to the point where I only say the first name and not the last, save myself some frustration.

I'm still getting a firm idea of the characters.I don't care for Stiva, but frankly, I don't care for Anna either. I get she was lonely and needing some emotional relationship, even physical, that she didn't get from him, but infidelity? I am not keen on persons with those morals, and though I empathize, I have a hard time liking her. I do believe she feels guilt and remorse for her actions, but not enough to stop and that troubles me. She almost seems to flaunt it at times.

As for Kitty, I think she is bitter and it's that chip on her shoulder that talks of not marrying. I believe she will think differently later.

So that's how I feel so far. Of course, it's all subject to change the further I get along. I may even grow to love it more than I do currently. Right now I sit at midway, hoping the writing will stay amazing, and the story will grow more depth. If it stays focused on infidelities, it may become a chore to read.

Comments

  1. I have taken to reading only the first names as well. In addition, I have created my own pronunciations, I am sure. I normally would take the time to get it right, except there is so much of it that I have just made the adjustments necessary in order for me to enjoy the book.
    I was not a fan of story lines with infidelity until I read Madame Bovary. The lifestyle is so removed from my own life that it is fascinating to analyze these characters. It is horrible to say, but I actually enjoy a good scandalous read.
    Stiva is a social climber and I think that I dislike that part of him more than anything. He just aggravates the hell out of me.
    I enjoyed reading your thought about the book so far.

    ReplyDelete
  2. the long names are quite tedious to read so i resorted to their nicknames instead. even with those, i'm not sure if my pronunciation is correct. just like Steph, i had to go past these "inconveniences" to simply enjoy the story.
    i commented in one of the posts that i don't think highly of extramarital affairs as well. they never did anyone good - the parties involved and especially the innocent ones like the children.
    thanks for sharing your thoughts.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sounds like something I might want to read....relationships, what makes someone tick, etc. On the other hand infidelity is not my cup of tea either.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I agree Stiva and Kitty are not my cup of tea!

    ReplyDelete
  5. i ADORE anna karenina! i could read and reread it and just not get enough! please overlook the names. and infidelity is just one part of the story, so please give it a chance :)

    have a wonderful week freda!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I'm not reading along because I read this book already. I just want to make a comment about it. I was not impressed at all. This book is nothing but a soap opera.

    ReplyDelete

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