Reviews tagging 'Animal death'

Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

27 reviews

aristarcodisamo's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Animal death, Misogyny, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Emotional abuse and Classism

chriswoody94's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity and Suicide

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Classism

olivemypuns's review against another edition

medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Minor: Animal death and Racism

mariasrv's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

(Note: I read this in Russian)

In an attempt to examine my own Russian-ness and form an opinion on Tolstoy as an adult (I studied his books in high school), I recently finished reading War and Peace and decided to tackle Anna Karenina next. 

On a personal level, I enjoyed Anna Karenina a lot more than I did War and Peace. Anna Karenina is a lot more contained, the plot is more linear, the structure of the book was great, and the characters cohesive. I loved Tolstoy's language, factual but poetic, and I found his psychologism mesmerizing. 

I think Tolstoy's insight into the human nature, together with his tenderness towards life and mastery as a writer, worked amazingly in this book. Of course, Tolstoy was examining the question of what makes a happy family through his own lense, which at this point is deeply outdated, both on a personal level (sometimes he comes off as a ranting grandpa) and on a societal level. But if you try to squint a bit, so to say, at some of the details, the bigger picture is beautiful and still relevant. 

Anna's plot line is a disturbing and poignant examination of a life being ruined because of feeling unloved, getting caught in passion, misunderstandings, and societal limitations.

The scene where she throws herself under the train is scary because of how much the text managed to put me in the same hopeless mindset.

Contrary to many other reviewers, I deeply sympathized with Levin. He is, of course, a bit of a self-insert, with accordingly Tolstovian views and values, but, unlikely basically everyone else in the novel, his primary driving force is sincerity, and Tolstoy doesn't shy away from acknowledging that sincerity is not without its faults. As Levin says in the end,

he will still fight with his wife, be inappropriate in conversations, and argue with the maids, but his life will, despite that, be full of meaning, because he strives to do good and follow his heart.

I don't agree with Levin (and Tolstoy) about many things, from religion to his stance on women's rights, but I think he's right that being led by a sincere and sometimes awkward earnestness is perhaps the best choice to deal with this life. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death and Suicide

Minor: Child death and War

mondovertigo's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Animal death and Classism

Minor: Child death

audreyvhall's review against another edition

challenging slow-paced

• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death

edwardian_girl_next_door's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Addiction, Animal death, Drug abuse, Medical content, Religious bigotry, and Abandonment

katybradley888's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative reflective relaxing sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Violence and War

sapphicnat's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

i love farming so much definitely recommend if you also like farming because that’s all there is in the middle<3

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty and Animal death

novelyon's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

anna's narrative slapped but levin was so boring, and worse, a landlord.........the peasants should've killed him the way the serfs did fyodor dostoevsky's dad :/

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide

Moderate: Drug use, Pregnancy, and Classism

Minor: Child death, Racism, Sexual content, Antisemitism, and War