Customer Reviews

Anna Karenina

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Reading a masterpiece like Anna Karenina is daunting -- requiring as it does a large investment of time and mental energy. But the audio format and Davina Porter's wonderful narration make it work. The narrator is critical in such a format. A good narrator seems like a companion for a long journey, and an expert one can provide some interpretation of a great work akin to the role of a conductor or an actress. Porter is able to do justice to the characters. Her interpretation of Anna's husband makes the man as unattractive as, I think, Tolstoy wanted him to be.

Classics, like youth, are wasted on the young. I read Anna Karenina at 19 and couldn't appreciate its richness until I've lived a life. What comes through on the second reading is the vanity of romantic love. Vronsky and Anna are the picture of perfect lovers. But love is also a social construct, and the relationship does not work without the supporting fabric of family, children, and friends -- however hypocritical that social milieu can be. Of course what's missing most from Anna and Vronsky's life is spirituality. Love needs a spiritual as well as a social context to survive and thrive.

I fell in love with Anna on the first reading and did not remember much about Levin's character. While Anna is still a wonderfully attractive and rich character on the second reading, Tolsoty's ultimate disapproval of her and his identification with Levin are far clearer on the second read.

Be warned. The sound quality on these CDs is very poor. They sound like highly compressed MP3s. Why they would do this is baffling, and if I was the narrator of the set I'd be furious with the finished product.
There's another unabridged Anna Karenina CD set by Blackstone books read by Nadia May that has better sound quality, though still not great.
On the other hand the 2 volume unabrigeded War and Peace set by Naxos AudioBooks, 2006 has a great narrator and crystal clear uncompressed sound. It's more expensive than this set, but a magical experience to listen to. In contrast, this set should have been great, but I soon gave up since it sounds like I'm listening to the narrator through a lousy modem instead of in my living room by a warm fire.

This is a great audio version of Anna Karenina. Although the narrator's Russian pronunciation of the names leaves something to be desired, everything else is superb. She is able to effectively create the characters in your mind, and does it so well that you don't even notice the narration--you simply see the images in your mind.

Very, very enjoyable.

a very enjoyable book to listen to, however, what translation is being used. Can anyone help me on this?

Even though she is one of the main characters and was given the title by the author, Leo Tolstoy, Anna is not the focus of this novel. The epic is really about Konstantin Levin, a character whose story is told interspersed with that of Anna's, and who represents the author during his trials of spiritual disbelief and eventual reconciliation.

It is no wonder why so many prefer to see the book as Anna's. She is much more interesting than Levin: She is rebellious, passionate, and has an affair, whereas Levin is generally straight-laced, ambivalent, and is willing to struggle through any troubles he has with his only love and wife, Kitty. Levin is a Victorian Russian; Anna seems Post-Modern American.

People love her story because it is so modern, because they can relate. But for folks like me, hearing all the Anna-saturated descriptions of the book presented it in a negative light. I don't want to read about a promiscuous, self-destructive person, and how the evil society looks down on the poor creature. I wouldn't have pity on her if I were in the Moscow society in the 1870s either. For this reason I was skeptical of reading the masterpiece.

As I began to delve into it, however, I realized that Anna was just used as a contrast to the real storyline of Levin's. He might be considered bland for his proper behavior, but he is principled (evidenced by his respect for Kitty and care of his farm), and despite some serious doubt and disbelief, he is a character that the reader can get behind and support, quite unlike Anna, who we all know is hopeless.

To reference a more modern explanation of Tolstoy's juxtaposition, Anna represents false justification as compared to Levin's true justification; Anna's love is a fleeting and dishonest, while Levin's is lasting and honest; and that is why one can cheer for Levin. His is true love; hers is artificial.

Everyone knows what happens at the end of the book. As such, it would seem that Anna Karenina is a tragedy. And I cannot deny that Anna's death is as cathartic as I imagined it could be. But the book does not end there. There is one more part to the epic, and it is as searching and finally rewarding as any literature in all of history. It truly is the greatest novel ever written, but it is Levin's not Anna's story that makes this work so amazing.

Finding this book on CD was exactly what I wanted and I love the narrator. I'm not enjoying Tolstoy as much as I thought I would. There are so many characters and details, it is hard to keep them all straight. I have found myself feeling bored and that the amount of detail was a little dreary. After 36 hours of listening, I'm still trying to discern what I have brought away from my experience of reading a classic such as this is touted to be.

I am bummed out because I'm two hours from the end. The reader of this unabridged version of Anna Karenina is spectacular, aside from that this is a pure masterpiece by Leo Tolstoy. Power, Relationships, Politics, Sex, History, even Sports. I will actually listen to this again during the Winter when I have the time. I followed the book with Spark Notes and got a 92% on the test. Great walking and listening audio book.
The best!!!!!

Anna Karenina is a teriffic novel. The audio version of it was great in the sense that the characters came to life. If you are commuting to work it is a perfect book to listen to. Highly recommended.

I received the collection of CD's the day after I purchased them, and they were all in perfect condition. I received exactly what the description said and would recommend the Anna Karenina Audiobook to anyone.

Product arrived quickly. Condition was not "Used-Like New" as stated. CD's were in good shape but the box was worn and not "Like New".