If I had seen this on the shelf, with its awful soft-focus, historical-chick-lit headless-woman cover, I might not have even picked it up. The subtitle is weird too: Anna Karenina is hardly an "enigmatic heroine." Complex, absolutely, but if any literary character is (in Blaisdell's words) "hyper-conscious," it would be Anna. Every thought, fear, passion, joy and grief is there for us to see. But then I expect Blaisdell had no say in those (ahem) "marketing" decisions.

I have read Anna Karenina several times, and love it. Bob Blaisdell has read it twenty times, including in Russian, which he learned in his mid forties in order to do so. He reveres it, cherishes it. And he is eager to tell you every single thing there is to know about "The Making of Anna Karenina": how it was conceived, developed, written (and nearly abandoned), thought about and finally published by Tolstoy and his long-suffering helpmate and wife, Sofia. You have to really love this novel and/or Tolstoy to enjoy this book, but if you are the right reader, you will.

You will also read a lot about Tolstoy's life, kids, marriage, houses, friendships, travels, and passion for horses. I did not know he was quite an expert in childhood education, a bit of a hypochondriac, depressive, a fanatical and affectionate writer of letters, and took himself very seriously indeed. Blaisdell is a friendly, fond, yet frank guide. Yes, Tolstoy was a very loving and involved dad... but poor Sofia endured 10 pregnancies by the time she was 30, and he refused to allow a wet nurse (as "unnatural") when her nipples were cracked and bleeding from breastfeeding. And no one gainsaid what Count Leo decreed.

Writers will find worthy insights into the writing process, authorial decisions made, and the emotional toll taken. I personally am still thinking about some of Tolstoy's stipulations about how the author feels - or does not feel - about his characters, and about the way descriptions are deployed. (For more on this, see my blogpost Tips from Tolstoy.) Blaisdell (lucky enough to work on some of this book while staying in Tolstoy's own house at Yasnya Polyana) is an approachable, personal, enjoyable writer - this is not a dry lit-crit book. I do wonder why he chose Constance Garnett's old and somewhat controversial translation as his basic text (I'm a Pevear and Volokhonsky fan, myself).

A pleasure for fans of Russian literature (glimpses of Turgenev and Dostoevsky pop up too). It may not make someone who has never read Anna K run out to buy a copy, but if you already have a beat-up, well-read copy on your shelf, this book will be an excellent supplement - and may get you to take your copy down and read it again.

9/7/2020 Update: I impulsively emailed Bob Blaisdell this morning, just to say how much I enjoyed his book, and asked him about his choice of the Garnett translation. He replied within an hour or two, with a cheerful and gracious note. His answer was that the Garnett is still a very good and readable translation, plus it's online with open access, so anyone can read it in full on the spot. I was delighted with his generous and friendly response! ( )