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Mar 09, 2011

Laura rated it:

My first thought upon finishing Android Karenina was that, had Tolstoy been aware of robots, androids, moon resorts, and magnetic grav trains, this is the book he'd have written. To my mind, the concept of robotics, with its sense of coldness and hardness and immovable logic, fits in perfectly with the idea of post-Tsar Russia; where bureaucracy and the welfare of the nation takes precedence over the welfare of the individual; where the sense of almost perpetual winter brings to mind the frigid More...

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Apr 15, 2011

Gretchen rated it:

I have read anna karenina before, but I did not really remember all of the plot line so it has been fun reading this book and slowly remembering some things, but then there are androids! it's very much an alternate reality that is fun to discover. I must admit that by the end, I was sucked in and wondering how the book was going to end and resolve some of the outstanding plot points. So this is a good addition to the other novels that have added zombies and sea monsters to jane austen books.

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Aug 04, 2011

Amanda rated it:

I admit that I've never read Leo Tolstoy's classic Anna Karenina. I did, however, get to see a theatrical version put on by my high school's drama department. I don't remember much about the plot itself -only that the entire thing was incredibly dreary, dramatic and well, depressing. What is it with Russian literature and being super-long and super-depressing? Maybe it had something to do with living in such a cold, dark country. Anyway, up until now, this was my entire relationship with Tolstoy More...

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May 30, 2011

Sarah rated it:

The newest in the Quirk lineup of mash-ups, this one allows the world of Tolstoy’s “Anna Karenina” to collide with a futuristic world of aliens and robots. If you are unfamiliar with the basic story of “Anna Karenina” here’s a brief throwdown. Rich and prominent (and married!) Anna Karenina falls in love with dashing young officer Vronsky. Their affair is used to contrast several other loving relationships in the book in their different levels and forms, as they face hardship and stigma from More...

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May 02, 2011

Anna rated it:

It's part "Anna Karenina," part Isaac Asimov, part Men in Black, and part steam punk. It's fantastic. It's been long enough that I don't remember how faithful the text is to the original, but I've decided it doesn't matter because you can read and enjoy both for what they are. It is to Winters' credit that you can't distinguish Tolstoy's words from the more modern edition. One thing Winters did right was to delete extraneous characters and subplots – a big thank you for that!

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Mar 10, 2011

Marcus rated it:

Android Karenina by Ben Winters is a Steampunk take on Leo Tolstoy’s classic novel and in deed, the plot resembles the original to a great degree and all original protagonists are present. They are incarnated in a way befitting a Steampunk setting. Android Karenina is set against a high-tech Steampunk background, placed in a pseudo 19th century Russia.
What first struck me was the easiness with which the human protagonists interact with their robotic alter-egos/side-kicks, the Class III com More...

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Oct 25, 2010

Mollymillions rated it:

Quirk Books has dubbed themselves “Masters of the Public Domain,” and it’s no idle boast. They’ve struck gold with the idea of mashing up classic literature with classic science fiction and fantasy tropes. Of their current titles, Android Karenina makes for the most successful pairing. As in the original, the book follows the relationships of two couples: the tragic Anna Karenina and Count Alexei Vronsky, and the more hopeful Nikolai Levin and Princess Kitty Shcherbatskaya. Frankly, that’s More...

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Jul 04, 2010

Lizzy rated it:

I feel i should start off by saying that if you haven't read Anna Karenina, you likely wont enjoy this 'remix' as much as someone who has. That's not to say that it doesn't stand well on it's own as a steampunk novel, but rather that it's likely to be more enjoyable if you're familiar with the original text.

That said, I really enjoyed this book. I've never been big on Tolstoy, and of all his books Anna Karenina was always my least favourite- However, this was brilliant. It's so inspi More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Dec 10, 2011

Graham rated it:

I came to this book - and this Mash up genre with an open mind. There are many great examples of Post Modern re-contextualisations of classic artworks; Shakespeare productions set in during the second world war, Wagner's ring cycle set against a backdrop of industrial socialist revolution, Derek Jarman's quirky anachronisms. These clever works re-frame and re-present classic stories within a contemporary context refreshing sometimes stale ideas for new audiences. I was hoping Android Karenina wo More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Nov 28, 2010

Suzanne added it

Full review at Steamed! http://ageofsteam.wordpress.com/2010/06/...

This retelling of Tolstoy’s classic tale of love and betrayal brings us into an alternate version of 19th Century Russia full of amazing technology, adventure, and robots. Winters does an excellent job of blending the gloomy feel of Pre-Revolutionary Russia with futuristic technology and modernism creating a believable and interesting tale that feels familiar yet is deliciously different. The amazing illustrations only More...

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Aug 10, 2010

Meg rated it:

Anna Karenina goes steampunk! And it works!

Backing up . . . the Tolstoy/Winters "collaboration" features a Russia populated by the aristocrats familiar from the original novel (which I don't think you necessarily have to have read to read this, but it helps) as well as by mechanized devices, ranging from the simple Class I devices of everyday convenience (think watches and mirrors), to Class II devices (think things that replace domestic servants and the working class in ge More...

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Jul 19, 2010

Marie rated it:

I reserve 5-star ratings for books of extraordinary creativity, skill, craftsmanship, and lasting impact to the reader. Of course there's that personal enjoyment variable, too.

Android Karenina meets every criteria I've got. Quirk Classics has yet to miss the mark on creativity, and Ben Winters molds words I could read or listen to all day in this work. My first three criteria have been met with each of the three previous Quirk Classics released, and I expected nothing less.
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Jun 08, 2010

Heather rated it:

Maybe it takes a lover of Tolstoy to really enjoy this work, I'm not sure since I've never read Tolstoy before. I had a really hard time getting into the characters. They never spoke to me.

Many times the events happened slowly and the next we have a paragraph describing a few years. I especially had a hard time with Anna Karenina. She's very complex, I'll give you that, but she was pretty messed up. She's willing to leave her son behind to run off with her lover and in the meantime s More...

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Jul 07, 2010

Keri rated it:

I fear I have no romantic bone in my body.

Okay, let me amend that. I do, just not one when it comes to Anna. Kitty and Levin? Yes. Adorable and I found myself rooting the whole time. Anna? No.

Let me start from the beginning though: I thoroughly enjoyed the novel. I haven't read Anna Karenina, so I can't compare how close it was to the original, but this one I did enjoy.

A reader can tell where Tolstoy's words shine through. They can tell where Winters placed robots ( More...

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Jun 23, 2011

Aimeekay rated it:

Android Karenina is set in the late 1800's, the same time period as the original Anna Karenina, by Leo Tolstoy. But I do not think Tolstoy ever pictured his Russia quite like this one. Groznium has greatly changed the way people live. Everything that isn't human is basically a robot. From the simple Class I's, like the I/Mouse/9, that keeps pests away, to the Class II's, such as the II/Governess/D145, that teaches the children, to the Class III's, the robot companions to the wealthy. The lights More...

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Jun 05, 2010

Lor rated it:

I was so excited to win this on the Goodreads giveaway. War and Peace has long been my favorite book but I was less familiar with Anna Karenina since I haven't read it since high school.

This version of the story is a mash-up from those creative people at Quirk Classics publishers. I can't say enough about the atmosphere of the book. You really do get a feel for the gloomy pre-revolutionary Russia mixed in with the industrial age mixed in with science fiction of the modern age that More...

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Jun 18, 2011

Theresa rated it:

I've posted Something Like a Review on my blog. Here's a sample, but to read all of it, please click here.

Lately, my genre of choice has been the literary mash-up. I am interested in and enchanted by the way contemporary writers take masterworks and reinvent them in a way that pays homage to the original work yet makes the piece relevant and interesting to today’s audience.

Not too long ago, I began my foray when I stumbled across Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Seth Gr

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Nov 02, 2011

Bill rated it:

I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. Having read Anna Karenina during college, I was a little worried about reading the Quirk version; I remembered gradually giving less and less of a damn about the characters and their plight in Dostoevsky's original, and after reading The Meowmorphosis, I was a little worried that the same might happen in this mash-up.

I am pleased to say that this book exceeded my expectations and quelled my fears about being bored right off the bat. The More...

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Jun 26, 2010

Snail in Danger (Sid) added it

Anna Karenina (on which this is based) was the first "grown up" book I read (for lack of a better term). I think I was 8 or 10 or so. Yes, I was a strange child, and no, maybe I shouldn't have been allowed to read it. I remember thinking it was engrossing, but I can't say with any certainty how well I understood it.

But anyway, as a science fiction fan I have a high standard for books involving robots. (Actually I am fairly particular generally.) While I get the sense t More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jul 30, 2011

Jake added it

The greatest love story ever told...with robots added. What more do you need? In a steampunk version of 19th century Russia, a new metallic ore has been discovered that has given the Russians the ability to create robots. Most prized amongst these robots are the Class III's, robots advanced enough to act as personal assistants and even friends to the Russians that have enough wealth and affluence to procure one. Robots have eliminated serfdom by serving in any number of menial capacities, an More...

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Jun 04, 2010

D351 rated it:

Holy freaking crap! I just finished this and am so thoroughly impressed. Between the complexity and nuance of the individual moments and the intricacy of the plot, Android Karenina is absolutely an amazing piece of literature. At first, I was sensing that this would be a cute retelling of a book I'd never read with some sci-fi humor thrown in, but I was absolutely wrong (I can't say exactly how wrong, as I've never read Anna Karenina). This is an excellent addition to the sci-fi genre, mash-up o More...

4 comments like

Jul 21, 2010

Leigh-ann rated it:

I really loved this book, and managed to do so without having any knowledge of the original "Anna Karenina". My only complaint is that some parts of the book were a bit slow, especially towards the end, and the slowness was due to the "Honoured Guests" subplot and not to any of Tolstoy's original work (that I could tell). I found Anna to be a self-centred bore, and am anxious to read the original to see if I feel the same way. I do look forward to the day when I can have a More...

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Jun 23, 2010

Lisa rated it:

I think of Android Karenina's ideal audience in terms of Venn diagrams: that mysterious place where "fans of Anna Karenina" and "science fiction readers who love reading about machinery and robots" overlaps. Many of Winters's variations on Tolstoy's themes are very clever -- particularly his Karenin -- and Quirk did well to choose AK for a steampunk mash-up. Still, I thought the book dragged a bit, particularly in the middle.

I should admit that I think Anna Karen More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 10, 2010

Nicole rated it:

I want to preface this review by stating that I have never before read anything by Tolstoy, so I have no idea how the original story unfolds (I will, of course, be reading it very soon), but this version was almost perfection. In my opinion, this 'mash up' is way better than PPZ. Don't get me wrong, PPZ was awesome because it had the whole originality factor going for it, but Android Karenina is by far the better piece of literature. The writing was so fluid and the story line fit so perfectl More...

2 comments like

Jul 24, 2010

Zach rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Jun 15, 2010

Louise rated it:

My taste in books runs to the ilk of Cold Mountain. I haven’t read one single vampire book. I never read the Harry Potter Books and I never could get into fantasy books—including the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings! I guess I’m just a snob! When I began reading Ben H. Winters’ mash-up of Android Karenina, my hopes were not high for a quick, light or funny read. Oddly enough, it was all three. Mash-ups are the latest thing in the literary world, mixing classics with new world monsters and demo More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jun 21, 2010

Rich rated it:

I have to admit, I am remiss in my knowledge of Russian literature. To wit: I've never read Anna Karenina. So what happens when the science-historical-fiction version Android Karenina comes out? Dive right in, of course!

I wasn't sure what to expect. Even the previous Quirk Classics I'd read - Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters and Pride and Prejudice and Zombies - didn't really prepare me for this. I knew the Jane Austen source material of the other two, but I didn't know Tolstoy More...

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Dec 27, 2010

Gabi rated it:

This book was definetly my most favorite of all of Quirk Classic's Spoofs (The others being Pride and Prejudice and Zombies and Sense and Sensibility). For those 2, the co-authors kept the original text, and what they added (for the most part) went along with the original plot. Sure, it was more humorous, but it was essentially the same plot line. Winters didn't go that route with Android however- instead of adding menaces, he added friends. He created a totally new subplot that the original tex More...

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Jun 19, 2010

Rachel rated it:

I got this book in a first reads giveaway.

Android Karenina, the newest in the "literary mash-up" trend from the publishers of the original mash-up, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, is not just one silly book in a series of silly books. In fact, it's not silly, apart from the Reader's Discussion Guide--not that the two Jane Austen mash-ups were necessarily silly either, but this review is about Android Karenina. And if it's not a silly fad what is it? It's a really good book More...

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Jun 08, 2010

Haley rated it:

Android Karenina was definitely a faster read than the original classic. Where before there was a lot of tension, now—thought the tension is still there—there is a lot of comic relief with the robots. Android Karenina is equally as enthralling as Tolstoy's "first novel," but the images of robots running around definitely make it lighter. The 2-inch wide novel isn't quite as… intimidating… with high-tech machinery involved.

The writing, in general, was witty. Tolstoy's words More...

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