Leo Tolstoy

The must-have Pevear and Volokhonsky translation of one of the greatest Russian novels ever written Described by William Faulkner as the best novel ever written and by Fyodor Dostoevsky as "flawless," Anna Karenina tells of the doomed love affair between the sensuous and rebellious Anna and the dashing officer, Count Vronsky. Tragedy unfolds as Anna rejects her passionless marriage and thereby exposes herself to the hypocrisies of society. Set against a vast and richly textured canvas of nineteenth-century Russia, the novel's seven major characters create a dynamic imbalance, playing out the contrasts of city and country life and all the variations on love and family happiness. While previous versions have softened the robust and sometimes shocking qualities of Tolstoy's writing, Pevear and Volokhonsky have produced a translation true to his powerful voice. This authoritative edition, which received the PEN Translation Prize and was an Oprah Book Club(TM) selection, also includes an illuminating introduction and explanatory notes. Beautiful, vigorous, and eminently readable, this Anna Karenina will be the definitive text for fans of the film and generations to come. This Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition also features French flaps and deckle-edged paper. For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

How far Tolstoy's doctrines may influence succeeding generations it is impossible to foretell; but when time has extinguished what is merely personal or racial, the divine spark which he received from his great spiritual forerunners in other times and countries will undoubtedly be found alight. His universality enabled him to unite himself closely with them in mental sympathy; sometimes so closely, as in the case of J. J. Rousseau, as to raise analogies and comparisons designed to show that he merely followed in a well-worn pathway. Yet the similarity of Tolstoy's ideas to those of the author of the "Contrat Social" hardly goes beyond a mutual distrust of Art and Science as aids to human happiness and virtue, and a desire to establish among mankind a true sense of brotherhood. . . .

It happened in the 'seventies in winter, on the day after St. Nicholas's Day. There was a fete in the parish and the innkeeper, Vasili Andreevich Brekhunov, a Second Guild merchant, being a church elder had to go to church, and had also to entertain his relatives and friends at home. But when the last of them had gone he at once began to prepare to drive over to see a neighboring proprietor about a grove which he had been bargaining over for a long time. He was now in a hurry to start, lest buyers from the town might forestall him in making a profitable purchase. . . . It was a moment that would ultimately cost someone his life, and for reasons that will surprise you. Listen carefully: read and learn.

The Kingdom of God Is Within You set in motion the spiritual revolution in Ghandi, and helped make him the man he was. Tolstoy was a powerful spiritual revolutionary. . . . he argues persuasively that the core teachings of Jesus have been lost to modern Christianity. This is a very, very special book. Read it, enjoy it, learn from it.

In Petersburg in the eighteen-forties a surprising event occurred. An officer of the Cuirassier Life Guards, a handsome prince who everyone predicted would become aide-de-camp to the Emperor Nicholas I and have a brilliant career, left the service, broke off his engagement to a beautiful maid of honor, a favorite of the Empress's, gave his small estate to his sister, and retired to a monastery to become a monk. This event appeared extraordinary and inexplicable to those who did not know his inner motives, but for Prince Stepan Kasatsky himself it all occurred so naturally . . .

Looking up, he saw something whitish behind the shrine. The daylight was fading, and the shoemaker peered at the thing without being able to make out what it was. "There was no white stone here before. Can it be an ox? It's not like an ox. It has a head like a man, but it's too white; and what could a man be doing there?" He came closer, so that it was clearly visible. To his surprise it really was a man, alive or dead, sitting naked, leaning motionless against the shrine. Terror seized the shoemaker, and he thought, "Some one has killed him, stripped him, and left him there. If I meddle I shall surely get into trouble." Also includes "Three Questions," "The Coffee House of Surat," and "How Much Land Does a Man Need?"

In Petersburg in the eighteen-forties a surprising event occurred. An officer of the Cuirassier Life Guards, a handsome prince who everyone predicted would become aide-de-camp to the Emperor Nicholas I and have a brilliant career, left the service, broke off his engagement to a beautiful maid of honor, a favorite of the Empress's, gave his small estate to his sister, and retired to a monastery to become a monk. This event appeared extraordinary and inexplicable to those who did not know his inner motives, but for Prince Stepan Kasatsky himself it all occurred so naturally . . .

Anna Karenina may be the greatest single novel ever written; it may also be just plainly and sublimely good. Regardless, there is no doubt that Anna Karenina (generally considered Tolstoy's finest novel) is a sublime achievement. Anna, miserable in a loveless marriage, succumbs to the desire for the dashing Vronsky. That sort of thing didn't stand one in good stead in 19th-century Russia; bad goes to worse, and the end Anna comes to is the stuff of legend. Tolstoy seamlessly captures a weaves a tapestry of Russian society -- as Matthew Arnold wrote in his celebrated essay on Tolstoy, "We are not to take Anna Karenina as a work of art; we are to take it as a piece of life." "One of the greatest love stories in world literature." -- Vladimir Nabokov

Looking up, he saw something whitish behind the shrine. The daylight was fading, and the shoemaker peered at the thing without being able to make out what it was. "There was no white stone here before. Can it be an ox? It's not like an ox. It has a head like a man, but it's too white; and what could a man be doing there?" He came closer, so that it was clearly visible. To his surprise it really was a man, alive or dead, sitting naked, leaning motionless against the shrine. Terror seized the shoemaker, and he thought, "Some one has killed him, stripped him, and left him there. If I meddle I shall surely get into trouble." Also includes "Three Questions," "The Coffee House of Surat," and "How Much Land Does a Man Need?"

The Kingdom of God Is Within You set in motion the spiritual revolution in Ghandi, and helped make him the man he was. Tolstoy was a powerful spiritual revolutionary. . . . he argues persuasively that the core teachings of Jesus have been lost to modern Christianity. This is a very, very special book. Read it, enjoy it, learn from it.

&&LDIV&&R&&LDIV&&R&&LI&&RThe Death of Ivan Illych and Other Stories&&L/I&&R, by &&LB&&RElizabeth Gaskell&&L/B&&R, is part of the &&LI&&RBarnes & Noble Classics&&L/I&&R&&LI&&R &&L/I&&R&&LI&&R &&L/I&&Rseries, which offers quality editions at affordable prices to the student and the general reader, including new scholarship, thoughtful design, and pages of carefully crafted extras. Here are some of the remarkable features of &&LI&&RBarnes & Noble Classics&&L/I&&R: &&LDIV&&RNew introductions commissioned from today's top writers and scholars Biographies of the authors Chronologies of contemporary historical, biographical, and cultural events Footnotes and endnotes Selective discussions of imitations, parodies, poems, books, plays, paintings, operas, statuary, and films inspired by the work Comments by other famous authors Study questions to challenge the reader's viewpoints and expectations Bibliographies for further reading Indices & Glossaries, when appropriateAll editions are beautifully designed and are printed to superior specifications; some include illustrations of historical interest. &&LI&&RBarnes & Noble Classics &&L/I&&Rpulls together a constellation of influences—biographical, historical, and literary—to enrich each reader's understanding of these enduring works.&&L/DIV&&R&&L/DIV&&R&&LP style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"&&R &&L/P&&R&&LP style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"&&RChief among &&LB&&RTolstoy&&L/B&&R's shorter works is &&LI&&RThe Death of Ivan Ilych&&L/I&&R, a masterful meditation on the act of dying. The first major fictional work published by Tolstoy after a mid-life psychological crisis, this novella reflects the author's struggle to find meaning in life, a challenge Tolstoy resolved by developing a religious philosophy based on brotherly love, mutual support, and charity. These guiding principles are the dominant moral themes in &&LI&&RThe Death of Ivan Ilych&&L/I&&R, an account of the spiritual conversion of a judge—an ordinary, unthinking, vulgar man—in the face of his terrible fear about death. &&L/P&&R&&LP&&RAlso included in this volume are &&LI&&RFamily Happiness&&L/I&&R, an early work that traces the arc of a marriage; &&LI&&RThe Kreutzer Sonata&&L/I&&R, a frank tale of sexual love that shocked readers when it first appeared; and &&LI&&RHadji Murád&&L/I&&R, Tolstoy's final masterpiece about power politics, intrigue, and colonial conquest. &&L/P&&R&&LP&&R&&LB&&RDavid Goldfarb&&L/B&&R teaches Polish, Russian, and Comparative Literature at Barnard College and Columbia University. He has written about Witold Gombrowicz, Bruno Schulz, Zbigniew Herbert, Stanislaw Ignacy Witkiewicz, Mikhail Lermontov, and Nikolai Gogol. &&L/P&&R&&L/DIV&&R

Long hailed as one of the world's greatest writers, Leo Tolstoy is best known for his novels War and Peace and Anna Karenina. Yet the popularity of his shorter works - including the two dozen collected here - attests to his prowess as master of the short story. From "Walk in the Light", a parable that reflects Tolstoy's fascination with early Christians, to beloved tales such as "Ivan the Fool", "A Prisoner in the Caucasus" and "What Men Live By, the stories in this volume have stood the test of time.

Tells the story of Hadji Murad, a Muslim warrior of the Caucasus, caught between the Russians and the Chechens in 1851-1852.

"Anna Karenina," by Leo Tolstoy, is part of the "Barnes & Noble Classics"" "series, which offers quality editions at affordable prices to the student and the general reader, including new scholarship, thoughtful design, and pages of carefully crafted extras. Here are some of the remarkable features of "Barnes & Noble Classics" All editions are beautifully designed and are printed to superior specifications; some include illustrations of historical interest. "Barnes & Noble Classics "pulls together a constellation of influences--biographical, historical, and literary--to enrich each reader's understanding of these enduring works. Vladimir Nabokov called Leo Tolstoy's "Anna Karenina" "one of the greatest love stories in world literature." Matthew Arnold claimed it was not so much a work of art as "a piece of life." Set in imperial Russia, "Anna Karenina" is a rich and complex meditation on passionate love and disastrous infidelity. Married to a powerful government minister, Anna Karenina is a beautiful woman who falls deeply in love with a wealthy army officer, the elegant Count Vronsky. Desperate to find truth and meaning in her life, she rashly defies the conventions of Russian society and leaves her husband and son to live with her lover. Condemned and ostracized by her peers and prone to fits of jealousy that alienate Vronsky, Anna finds herself unable to escape an increasingly hopeless situation. Set against this tragic affair is the story of Konstantin Levin, a melancholy landowner whom Tolstoy based largely on himself. While Anna looks for happiness through love, Levin embarks on his own search for spiritual fulfillment through marriage, family, and hard work. Surrounding these two central plot threads are dozens of characters whom Tolstoy seamlessly weaves together, creating a breathtaking tapestry of nineteenth-century Russian society. From its famous opening sentence--"Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way"--to its stunningly tragic conclusion, this enduring tale of marriage and adultery plumbs the very depths of the human soul. Amy Mandelker, Associate Professor of Comparative Literature at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, is the author of "Framing Anna Karenina: Tolstoy, the Woman Question, and the Victorian Novel" and coeditor of "Approaches to Teaching Anna Karenina."