Russian Literature
Which Anna Karenina quote best explains Tolstoy's idea of "light and shadow"?
"All the variety, all the charm, all the beauty of life is made up of light and shadow."
How does Karenin's "to love those one hates is impossible" reveal his character?
"Love those that hate you, but to love those one hates is impossible."
Which Anna Karenina Quote Captures Oblonsky's Love of Life?
"I don't count life as life without love."
Why does Anna Karenina begin with "Happy families are all alike"?
"Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way."
What the Oblonskys' House Quote Reveals in Anna Karenina
"Everything was in confusion in the Oblonskys' house."
Best Historical Fiction Books: War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
Why Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace (1869) remains a defining historical novel: five families, the 1812 invasion of Russia, and Tolstoy's quiet argument against the way history is told.
Best Historical Fiction Books: Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
Why Leo Tolstoy's Anna Karenina (1878) remains one of the defining historical novels: love, adultery, conscience, and social judgment in imperial Russia, read closely.