Anna Karenina

The translation/translator(s) you choose absolutely matter(s) when you read a work of literature originally written in a language different from your native tongue.I was sifting through other reviews folks have written and noticed that most of the 1-3 star reviews written in English are for translations other than this one.I understand. Completely. I tried, multiple times, to read this tome as translated into English by other people. Tried. Failed. Tried again. Failed again. Tried yet again. Cried. Threw the book at the wall and swore to never again pick up anything written by Tolstoy.Then it appeared on the syllabus for my Russian Lit class. Turns out I happened to take the course the semester its professor switched from Dostoyevsky to Tolstoy as the main text. Only, this time, the 4th translation of Anna Karenina I attempted to read, was different.I honestly can't convey what it is that is different. I know that's unhelpful. But, I do know that translations of texts are sort of like therapists. Sometimes, you just have to keep trying a new one until you find the right fit. When you do, things just "click".That's how this translation was. In comparison to other versions, everything just "clicked". I've read other works this team has translated from other Russian authors, and it's the same way.Now, what you're left with, once the frustration of the language barrier has been stripped away, is still a massive tome containing two separate stories unfolding simultaneously. And you still have the super duper fun job of trying to keep track of all the characters, which can be a tad overwhelming at times.But, this is a beautiful and heartbreaking story that moves quicker than it should, and is over before you want it to be.I've never before or since read an 800+ page novel and gone, "Wait! That's it?!?"For what it's worth, the book is exactly as long and as short as it needs to be. But it left me with that bittersweet "I can't believe it's over" feeling for a very long time after the fact. And I've not read anything else quite like it.That's certainly a credit to the translation team, but I get the impression that's Tolstoy's doing.

Truly an excellent book. I loved every page.

Que pesadilla, que largo y aburrido 😐 la literatura clásica me sigue defraudando.