Title: Anna Karenina
Author: Leo Tolstoy
My Reflection: It took me almost two months to finish Anna Karenina, though I hate to admit that. But I’m glad that I finally read it. I most enjoyed how complex the thoughts, emotions, and even actions, of the characters were. I constantly found myself thinking “I like this character,” and then 100 pages later a new aspect of his/her character would emerge and I would change my mind. Invariably, I ended up changing it again. Sometimes an individual’s motives and thoughts were contradictory or nonsensical–but that is what made it true to life. I most liked Levin, even though there were moments I did not like him.
I do feel that my reading experience didn’t do the novel justice. Tolstoy raises so many questions about so many topics–marriage, motherhood, suicide, spirituality, social responsibility, class differences, love. But I never went beyond “Hmmm… that’s an interesting thought,” to actually mulling over any of them, much less discussing them.
I did struggle with the many (in my opinion) superfluous passages. But what makes the book worth reading is Tolstoy’s grasp of the complex human mind/heart and his exploration of fascinating themes.
