The Kreutzer Sonata by Leo Tolstoy

The Kreutzer Sonata by Leo Tolstoy
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book doesn’t stand the test of time well, but it’s interesting and entertaining. It also made me think about the principle of Christian celibacy in a different way.

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Family Happiness by Leo Tolstoy

Family Happiness by Leo Tolstoy
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is about that thing that happens to most married people: first the passionate love, then an emotional bump in the road, and then a life-long truce. It doesn't happen to everyone, though many people can't avoid it.

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Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book is wonderful. Tolstoy captures every important human feeling, thought, and relationship in a way that I doubt could be surpassed. He tackles birth, death, and the meaning of life with his genius of perception and communication.

It’s a long book and dragged a bit in the sections on Levin’s farming or political debates and observations. But even these sections contribute to a more complete sense of the historical context and life of the characters. Additionally, Tolstoy seemed to understand the concept of mindfulness and flow and explained it in the mowing section pretty well.

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A Confession by Leo Tolstoy

A Confession by Leo Tolstoy
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Tolstoy trying to figure out the meaning of life. Remarkably similar to my own experiences except I never got to be a successful sinful writer. Haha. I don't feel terribly satisfied with the end of his essay or my (same) current status. Hopefully, there's some step after this.

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The Death of Ivan Ilych by Leo Tolstoy

The Death of Ivan Ilych by Leo Tolstoy
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The most important, most true, most amazing thing I have ever read. I wish I had read it sooner and often.

Death is one of the most important things humans must confront, but most of don't until and unless we must. Instead, we are caught by surprise. When I had to confront it the first time, I couldn't believe how unprepared our society had left me. There is a lot of information that would make us able to handle it with more grace and less pain. The Death of Ivan Ilych perfectly captures the ironic surprise of the most important event of our lives which we all know will happen but surprises us nonetheless.

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