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A few months ago I read War and Peace for the usual reasons--one to say I did it and one to please a friend online from Russia that I had an interest in learning more about her country. War and Peace had many good moments to it but was wildly earratic in story pacing and character development. The main lady Natasha never in my mind rose above spoiled brat status and Pierre was a model for the Walking Dead in personality and interests. I felt Gogol the much better Russian writer. After about three months and three other friends strongly advocating it I started Anna Karenina the other night and the difference between the two books by Tolstoy are like Superman and Batman--THIS is the Tolstoy novel that should be revered. Anna finally comes on the scene in Part 1 Chapter 18 and she is NOT at all as I pictured her. Knowing in advance her eventual fate I had deliberately avoided the book all these years because of a too close intimacy with suicide (attempts at least) and its life changing consequences. Had just finished reading Don Quixote and now Anna should take about a month then back to good old fashioned pulps--I have my eye on Altus Press and Frederick Nebel's Cardigan series from the old Dime Detective magazine which over 20 years I've managed to get about 45 or so of them--alas three of them have missng pages but at least by authors I don't care about.

I discovered too much work copying Facebook reviews from Don Quixote Chapter and Chapter and transfering here. Plus very numerous typos as I am lazy about proofing and fixing in general.

Quixote was a melancholy work that was fascinating to watch he and Sancho Panza on their adventures. I rarely laughed at any of the ups and downs of the duo but felt a sadness that Quixote never quite achieved his glory he sought with a full heart and his cure seems to have ended his passion for life. I am glad for the experience. In so many ways this book does set the tone for every novel written thereafter.