Books

1886. [a handsome copy] By Count Lyof N. Tolstoï. Translated by Nathan Haskell Dole. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell & Company, n.d.[c1886]. 4 pp undated ads. Original dark blue cloth stamped in gilt. First American Edition (and first edition in the English language) -- early (though not quite the first) issue. This is Tolstoy's great tragedy of a woman's faith in romantic love -- it and the earlier WAR AND PEACE are considered Tolstoy's two masterpieces. The original publication in eight parts in Russian came out serially in The Russian Messenger, between 1873 and 1877, and then in book form in 1878. Considered one of the great novels of world literature, Anna Karenina has been filmed numerous times -- beginning in 1911 (which has not survived), through 2012 (screenplay by Tom Stoppard, starring Keira Knightley and Jude Law). The American pirate publisher Crowell never put a publication date on his title pages, so the only date on any copy is the copyright date of 1886. Copies bearing…

Anna Karenina is a novel by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy, first published in book form in 1878. Many authors consider Anna Karenina the greatest work of literature ever written, and Tolstoy himself called it his first true novel. It deals with themes of betrayal, faith, family, marriage, Imperial Russian society, desire, and rural vs. city life. The complex novel unfolds against the backdrop of 19th-century Russian high society and tells the tragic story of a married aristocrat and her affair with the affluent Count Vronsky. The novel explores a diverse range of topics throughout its pages and profoundly influences the genres of realist and romantic fiction.