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I was waiting in the grocery store the other day, and went to the books/magazines area (which, according to my wife, is an addiction of greater proportion than crack or tobacco -- to me, anyway). And it was there that I saw it: Anna Karenina in oversized pocketbook form, all damn-near 1,000 pages of it, in a beautiful new cover. But the best part was the wrapper on the book, and what it said: Anna Karenina had made it to Oprah's book club selection list. Now there are sure to be people (mostly women) coming to terms with Tolstoy's great tragedy about Karenin and his wife, her affair with Vronsky, and the social condition . . .
It is, like Tolstoy's other well-known works, marked by a few features. First, it is incredibly long. Second, the number of characters and plot line is hard to follow without a program over the typical reading time. Third, it is absolutely epic. Fourth, it's not an easy read where your eyes can glide over the pages for half an hour and you haven't missed much. Although long, it has to be devoured actively. Fifth, it is a compelling and some might argue timeless tale well told.
Good luck to Oprah's friends and viewers. This journey will be worth it. Too bad Leo isn't around to benefit from the royalties.
Posted by Grayson at August 4, 2004 07:34 AM