Anna Karenina

By: Leo Tolstoy

Narrated by: David Horovitch

Anna Karenina seems to have everything - beauty, wealth, popularity and an adored son. But she feels that her life is empty until the moment she encounters the impetuous officer Count Vronsky.

Translated by Louise and Aylmer Maude.

©1994 BBC Audiobooks Ltd (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

The best narration I have ever heard. Mr. Horovitch is simply the best.

Dear Anna

I Loved this book. I wished so badly I could speak with Anna.
The performance was AMAZING to me, I was actually able to keep track of the complicated relationships between characters and of each character because of the narration. He did it perfectly.
coming from someone who has not seen the movie or even looked up the plot to the book I was shocked at then end. I even cried for Anna and her son. This book gave me all the emotions you can think of. A must read if you ask me!

Written in a different time.

I am so used to the cookie cutter way storylines are written and and played out with all of today’s movies and books that I believe it has effected my ability to fully appreciate this book. This book is a challenge. It goes to and fro from character to character’s storylines and then fills in large areas with rather pointless long winded narratives that you can get lost very easily. I don’t regret taking the time to listen to this book. It just was not what I expected

A story like none other

This is just the best story I've ever listened to, what a understanding of people's lives .

I Wish I Had Read this Long Ago

What made the experience of listening to Anna Karenina the most enjoyable?

The storytelling is wonderful. Tolstoy's descriptions made me feel I was watching this as a movie in my mind.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I had no favorite character. I felt they were all egoistic and even if they were thinking of others, it was in either a patriarchal or narcissistic way.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

I really dislike films made from books. The scenes are never as vivid as the ones I see in my mind.

Any additional comments?

I wish I'd read this book in school. It would be great to dissemble and get points of view of others.

A book I'll never forget

Loved it. Going in I was expecting Anna Karenina to be so heavy that it would be a chore to chip away at, but I was quite wrong. Tolstoy's writing was an absolute pleasure. The characters feel so real that I feel as though I know them. I pitied and despised Anna, and admired Levin, especially because he wasn't perfect (making him relatable). Beautiful writing. Heart-wrenching and moving novel.

And David Horovitch — PERFECTION.

Fantastic book, extremely well narrated

Tolstoy has an amazing ability to articulate the nuances of human thought. To some extent, augments my own internal dialog. This is not an easy read, but incredibly rewarding. I highly recommend this version as David Horovitch was an exceptional narrator.

Amazing performance by the narrator

Excellent narration and 1.5x speed kept me going through the dull parts. Farming? the Serbian question? I'd have put it down if I was reading instead of listening. Great listening experience overall.

Sublime and perennially relevant

No one does it quite like Tolstoy. No one can trace out so effortlessly all the nuance in such a variety of relationships, built around characters complete and full of surprise, without betraying the sacred truth that sacred truth won’t fit into words.

As long and dense as it is, as full of meaning as it is, it moves smoothly and naturally. That credit goes to Tolstoy and to the translator. As for the performance, it is movingly delivered. I’ve listened to a number of 30+ hour audiobooks and they tend to be more of a slog than this. This sets the standard.

An Epic for today’s turmoil.

I had Anna Karenina on my wish list for a while, but seeing how the book was long and time was short, I have put it off. Until this January. With everything that has been going on in the world I searched for books that would give me historic insight into modern troubles. Anna Karenina proved exactly what my person needed. Beautifully written, splendidly performed, the book has been a delight to listen to.