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The Anna Karenina Fix
The Anna Karenina Fix: Life Lessons from Russian Literature | Viv Groskop
12 posts | 4 read | 31 to read
A literary self-help memoir about using the Russian classics to find the answer to life's most important questions. Viv Groskop has discovered the meaning of life in Russian literature. As she knows from personal experience, everything that has ever happened in life has already happened in these novels: from not being sure what to do with your life (Anna Karenina) to being in love with someone who doesn't love you back enough (A Month in the Country by Turgenev) or being socially anxious about your appearance (all of Chekhov's work). This is a literary self-help memoir, with examples from the author's own life that reflect the lessons of literature, only in a much less poetic way than Tolstoy probably intended, and with an emphasis on being excessively paranoid about having an emerging moustache on your upper lip, just like Natasha in War and Peace.
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review
Suelizbeth
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Pickpick

What‘s better than a book about books? A laugh out loud book about books, particularly Russian books. And Russian authors. Viv Groskop brings these eleven books and authors to life and gives me a renewed belief that I CAN read War and Peace. Informative and scholarly without being pedantic. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Texreader Excellent review!! Stacked! 3y
Suelizbeth @Texreader Thank you! 📚❤️ 3y
44 likes4 stack adds2 comments
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ReadingEnvy
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Pickpick

Each chapter focuses on a work of Russian literature, mostly novels but a play and poetry collection or two sneak in as well. The author writes about her own life and experience with Russia, and I honestly skipped it sometimes to focus on the literary commentary. ↘️

ReadingEnvy She has done her research but the tone is very approachable, not didactic at all, and she breaks down many works or literature into why they matter to Russian lit, what readers can expect/obtain, major themes, and sometimes interesting connections to each other. ↘️ 3y
ReadingEnvy I liked reading the chapters about novels I'd already read - Anna Karenina, The Master and Margarita, etc - but also found encouragement in the chapters on the novels I'm not sure about. They feel less daunting now. 3y
63 likes4 stack adds2 comments
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Librarybelle
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Do you look for helpful lessons from Russian literature? No? Maybe you should?!?! I‘m so interested in reading this one, as Groskop touches on handling situations like Inner Conflict or Unrequited Love by reading Russian literature. #WonderfulLife #RedRoseSeptember

Blaire I‘m intrigued. 5y
arlenefinnigan I've never read any Russian literature. I attempted The Brothers Karamazov and gave up after 3 months. 5y
See All 8 Comments
AnneCecilie I want to read this one too. I also want to read more Russian Literature, I‘ve only read “Anna Karenina” and “The Master and Margarita”. 5y
Librarybelle @Blaire It has to be fun! 5y
Librarybelle @Cinfhen ❤️❤️❤️ 5y
Librarybelle @arlenefinnigan Yeah - the Russian authors loved using words! 5y
Librarybelle @AnneCecilie I have several titles in my library. I‘m still making my way through War and Peace. I‘ve read Anna Karenina and works by Pushkin. Others, I‘ve sampled through school over the years. 5y
85 likes3 stack adds8 comments
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Insightsintobooks
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SailorMoon This must be a good one!!! 🌙 6y
54 likes2 stack adds1 comment
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RowReads1
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RowReads1
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🍾🥂🍸

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RowReads1
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RowReads1
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RowReads1
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Next

50 likes2 stack adds
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kathleenaflynn
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Was crying with suppressed laughter reading this on the subway.

Laura317 Just the info on the book gave me a giggle. 😂 (edited) 6y
14 likes1 comment
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Lissa00
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“‘No one has had a chance to read the book, but it‘s essential contents are already known,‘ said Brezhnev. He could have had a great time writing Amazon reviews.”

Or Goodreads😂😂