How Many Chapters in Anna Karenina?

239 chapters. Anna Karenina (1878) runs 239 chapters in eight parts — translations differ by one or two because of how double-titled sections are counted. At about 350,000 words, that averages 1,464 words per chapter — roughly 6 minutes of reading each at an average pace, which makes each chapter a useful planning unit. A manageable pace is about 239 nights at one chapter a night; at 30 minutes a night, plan on about 50 days. The full reading-time breakdown is at how long it takes to read Anna Karenina, and the Anna Karenina quiz tests what stuck.

The structure, chapters by chapters

Eight parts of short, even chapters braiding two plots: Anna's fall (parts 1, 4-7 especially) and Levin's search (2-3, 8). The chapters are famously short — many are two pages — and Tolstoy alternates them between the storylines like a stately cross-cut, so the book's pace is quick even at 350,000 words. Part 8, Levin's harvest-and-faith ending, is the novel's real destination; Anna's trains have already finished their work by then.

The chapters divide this work into natural reading sessions. Each lasts about 6 minutes at an average pace; the table below shows how that changes with reading speed.

The chapters worth knowing

Not every chapter earns a place in the argument, but a handful carry the book. These are the ones to watch for:

1. 1. The Oblonsky household — 'All happy families are alike' — the most quoted opening sentence in Russian literature.
2. 1:29. The station meeting — Anna and Vronsky's eyes meet; a watchman is cut in half by the train. The plot and its price announced together.
3. 4:17. The horse race — Vronsky's fatal mistake on Frou-Frou — the failure Anna is watching from the stands as her own future.
4. 7:31. The station — The candle, the freight train, and the second watchman. The chapter that gives the book its architecture.

Reading pace, per chapter and whole

At 30 minutes a night, you can read about 5 chapters per session and finish in roughly 50 days. Use a natural break rather than stopping mid-chapter; it is easier to resume when you know where the next unit begins.

Working through the whole shelf? The Leo Tolstoy books in order guide orders it.

Chapter counts for other classics

War and Peace, Moby-Dick, Don Quixote, The Count of Monte Cristo, The Da Vinci Code, Life of Pi, The Maze Runner, Pride and Prejudice, Great Expectations, The Shining, Allegiant — among books measured by chapters, Anna Karenina ranks 2 of 93. Browse all classic book chapter counts. Each count is tied to the text or standard edition, with a reading plan for each unit. When you finish this one, the book quiz settles how much of it stayed.

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