I reread Anna Karenina. The book didn't live up to the hype I gave it the first reading. Below is my review from 2019 when I first read it. Since reading AK for the first time, I have reread War and Peace twice and read more of Tolstoy's nonfiction. I also finished reading The Neapolitan Quartet by Elena Ferrante prior to rereading AK. It might be unfair to any book to have to follow Ferrante's Quartet!
Overall, I dropped AK from 5 stars to 3 stars. I still liked it, but the characters all kind of sucked in one way or another. I think this was very intentional by Tolstoy. Tolstoy thought the elites sucked. It's clear to see now after learning more about Tolstoy.
Below is my original 2019 5 Star Review
Anna Karenina has all the drama and philosophy of War and Peace. Pending a reread of War and Peace, I like Anna Karenina better.
The relationships, character perspectives, and descriptions are perfect. Most books I read now, I can critique and find problems with. Tolstoy is flawless. His descriptions don't drag. The ideas are still fresh and relevant; it's hard to believe it was written 150 years ago. From feminism to class issues to existential crises, the book keeps you engaged and caring about all the characters and relationships. It's hard for me to care about rich people, but Tolstoy pulled it off!
The juxtaposition between the main characters and two main relationships provide a lot of food for thought both literally and philosophically. The story was originally called Two Marriages. Good call changing it, that titled sucks.
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