It is really a great novel. I'm still a bit curious about those last 50 pages, but the first half of the novel is fantastic. I love that horse racing scene. And the bit with Anna and her husband and her breakdown from being separated from her son.
Thanks for the kind comment! I suppose on RUclips, people will find what interests them. I try to make the video with just enough information to entice people to read the book. I think giving people too much information in advance can ruin a lot of the enjoyment of feeling you are making your own discoveries. Thanks again!
I enjoyed hearing you thoughts on this! I agree about the last half of the book being full of fillers. For example I still don't understand the bit about Karenin and the French man; what was that all about? Do you think it was just to show that Karenin would rather do all this than just confront his feelings haha?
I don't remember the second half of the book very well, except how much I disliked it compared with the amazing first half. I really don't know what was the point of the whole trip to Italy and he starts taking painting lessons. It really did fill like a lot of extra plot threads in the second half.
Blows W&P out of the water, for me. I thought it was pretty close to perfect. The themes were like an onion, with each new skin working down to the core, perfectly encapsulating the ideas being explored, and I really liked the subjective ending. Totallly a book for me. W&P was has many interjections from Tolstoy making perfunctory points and for how long it is feels really skin deep for many of the characters and mostly came off as masturbatory. I expected Anna K to be less good but it is probably my favourite Russian classic so far, though I’ve only read 6 or so, 🤷🏻♂️
Thanks for your perspective on this one Fraser. Hope you are well. It looks like it's going to be a tough semester for me at university, and I'm worried my RUclips channel might be slipping. I'm going to try to keep up, but recently it's been quite difficult to find the time. Take care!
I'm a little nervous when it comes to Pynchon. Though I really know nothing about his books, I am aware that he has a particularly fanatical fan-base. Which I suppose, if I think about it, means that I really should get to reading Pynchon as soon as possible. There's a reason why people get fanatical about books and writers, right?
@@grantlovesbooks Oh, right; I'd forgotten about the fanatics. That would actually make me a bit nervous about posting a review; who knows what sort of wrath may fall on you from Internet fans? And I'd imagine Pynchon fanatics must be a little crazier than most. It's been years-nay, decades-since I've read Pynchon, and all my copies of his books were lost in a warehouse fire twenty years ago. I recall _The Crying of Lot 49_ being enjoyable back then, though now when I re-read the the start of it I really can't get into it. _Gravity's Rainbow,_ though, from its classic fist line ("A screaming comes across the sky.") onward, still really grabs me with its prose. Listening a bit to the Audible sample I notice it's one of the very few books I might be able to listen to (perhaps because of that wonderful prose), though the book is so densely packed with ideas that I'd probably want to be able to go back and read it as well. I also recall quite enjoying _Vineland,_ though apparently it wasn't a big fan favourite for being too, well, what you might call a "normal" novel.
I just finished Anna Karenina yesterday! I love Levin and Kitty. Their relationship is what true love is like irl.
It is really a great novel. I'm still a bit curious about those last 50 pages, but the first half of the novel is fantastic. I love that horse racing scene. And the bit with Anna and her husband and her breakdown from being separated from her son.
Another great video. Just a shame there doesn't seem to be a bigger audience for this kind of content now days.
Thanks for the kind comment! I suppose on RUclips, people will find what interests them.
I try to make the video with just enough information to entice people to read the book. I think giving people too much information in advance can ruin a lot of the enjoyment of feeling you are making your own discoveries.
Thanks again!
I loved the Book. Very involved but great reading. Truly a monster.
I love your videos very much, they're very interesting! Keep up the good work 👍
Thank-you very much! I'm really glad you enjoy them!
I enjoyed hearing you thoughts on this!
I agree about the last half of the book being full of fillers. For example I still don't understand the bit about Karenin and the French man; what was that all about? Do you think it was just to show that Karenin would rather do all this than just confront his feelings haha?
I don't remember the second half of the book very well, except how much I disliked it compared with the amazing first half. I really don't know what was the point of the whole trip to Italy and he starts taking painting lessons. It really did fill like a lot of extra plot threads in the second half.
Blows W&P out of the water, for me. I thought it was pretty close to perfect. The themes were like an onion, with each new skin working down to the core, perfectly encapsulating the ideas being explored, and I really liked the subjective ending. Totallly a book for me. W&P was has many interjections from Tolstoy making perfunctory points and for how long it is feels really skin deep for many of the characters and mostly came off as masturbatory. I expected Anna K to be less good but it is probably my favourite Russian classic so far, though I’ve only read 6 or so, 🤷🏻♂️
Thanks for your perspective on this one Fraser. Hope you are well.
It looks like it's going to be a tough semester for me at university, and I'm worried my RUclips channel might be slipping.
I'm going to try to keep up, but recently it's been quite difficult to find the time.
Take care!
Hm. Now I'm struggling to decide whether to recommend _Gravity's Rainbow_ or _The Crying of Lot 49._ (The latter is much shorter.)
I'm a little nervous when it comes to Pynchon. Though I really know nothing about his books, I am aware that he has a particularly fanatical fan-base.
Which I suppose, if I think about it, means that I really should get to reading Pynchon as soon as possible. There's a reason why people get fanatical about books and writers, right?
@@grantlovesbooks Oh, right; I'd forgotten about the fanatics. That would actually make me a bit nervous about posting a review; who knows what sort of wrath may fall on you from Internet fans? And I'd imagine Pynchon fanatics must be a little crazier than most.
It's been years-nay, decades-since I've read Pynchon, and all my copies of his books were lost in a warehouse fire twenty years ago. I recall _The Crying of Lot 49_ being enjoyable back then, though now when I re-read the the start of it I really can't get into it.
_Gravity's Rainbow,_ though, from its classic fist line ("A screaming comes across the sky.") onward, still really grabs me with its prose. Listening a bit to the Audible sample I notice it's one of the very few books I might be able to listen to (perhaps because of that wonderful prose), though the book is so densely packed with ideas that I'd probably want to be able to go back and read it as well.
I also recall quite enjoying _Vineland,_ though apparently it wasn't a big fan favourite for being too, well, what you might call a "normal" novel.