Anna Karenina – Leo Tolstoy – 1886 | Famous First English Language Edition

The first English edition of Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy’s tragic novel about love, happiness, and societal expectations, was first published in 1886 by Thomas Y. Crowell & Co. The story centers around a married Russian socialite’s passionate but ill-fated affair with a military officer, and the novel’s exploration of desire has fascinated readers since its publication. American writer William Faulkner called it the greatest novel of all time. This first American edition includes all eight parts of the novel, translated by T.Y. Crowell’s literary advisor, Nathan Haskell Dole.

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Anna Karénina: in eight parts
• Author: Leo Tolstoy
• Contributor: Nathan Haskell Dole (Translator)
• Publisher: New York, T.Y. Crowell & Co.
• Edition: First American Edition, 1886
• Binding: Original publisher’s blue cloth with gilt embossing
• Format: Octavo (8vo), single volume
• Size: ~ 7.75in x 5.5in (19.5cm x 14cm)
• Collation: [2], viii, 5–773, [5]
• Contents Include:
  • Complete English translation of Anna Karenina
  • Preface by Nathan Haskell Dole
• Provenance: Handwritten ownership inscriptions of Susie R. Doolittle, Christmas 1889; S.L Sickles, August, ’72 from Roxy.

Condition:

Very Good. Original blue cloth shows mild edge wear, with some fraying at the head and foot of the spine and corners. Text block is tight and secure, and internally the pages are clean. Floral endpapers show some age-toning.

Why Collect This?

• First English-language edition of the novel
• Released before the first British edition
• All eight parts of Anna Karenina in one complete volume

Item Number: #31191