Vladimir Nabokov

[pontalba]

I thought I would tackle The Real Life of Sebastian Knight next, as it was actually the second Nabokov I bought, our gal Lolita being the first. Maybe I am jumping the gun a bit, but what do you guys think? Who, which, when.....yada, yada, yada................

 

[Peder]

Pontalba and all,
It does sound like time to think about what to read next, what with the conversation on Glory apparently winding down, at least in number of participants. So I guess we should indeed be brave -- Martin was -- and ask how many will want to be in on reading another Nabokov novel, and when shall that be? And, oh yes, what shall it be?

I would gladly read Sebastian Knight, as you suggested, to get back to my other favorite genre - mystery stories
From the back cover:

The Real Lif of Seastian Knight is a perversely magical literary detective story -- subtle, intricate, leading to a tantalizing climax -- about the mysterious life of a famous writer.[What else?] Many people knew things about Sebastian Knight as a distinguished novelist, but probably fewer than a dozen knew of the two love affairs that so profoundly influenced his career, the second one in such a disastrous way. After Knight's death, his half brother sets out to penetrate the enigma of his life, starting with a few scanty clues in the novelist's private papers. His search proves to be a story as intriguing as any of his subject's own novels, as baffling, and, in the end, as uniquely rewarding..

Anybody else? Anything else? SIL? Breaca? Ms?, Steffee? Lurkers?

Name a title -- back cover descriptions gladly provided,
Peder

 

[Peder]

This is boding ill for Amazon and Borders.

 

[pontalba]

not really, they already have my piece of the action........

 

[Peder]

...........

 

[Ms.]

Glory and Invitation to a Beheading.
danke

MS
However, with the background you already have, another possibillity is what really comes to my mind. If you were interested in moving outside his fiction

I fear that by moving outside of Nabokov himself i'd predjudice any works of his i will read in the future. I will eventually read american/russian years, come round to his

Nabokov's Pale Fire: The Magic of Artistic Discovery.

aha it is on order

Finally, please allow me to extend my siincerest invitation that you join our discussions and fully participate in the selections of the books we read. We are currently deep into the discussion of Glory in a separate thread and your added thoughts would be very welcome. In addition you are welcome to add your thoughts to threads on Lolita and Pnin which we have also discussed. You will no doubt prompt further conversations there. I am sure we all look forward to your participation and we hope that you too are so inclined.

Yours most sincerely,
Peder

I appreciate the invitation having perused the Pnin thread but felt there is nothing i could add outside of what was already posted. I will hopefully contribute to any future thread on The Real Life of Sebastian Knight.

Ms, if you are not entirely bedazzled by this incredibly gracious and informed invitation, then you are immune to wizardry. Peder has several of us under his spell.

Like any addict, I will only add: Try it, you'll like it!

Hehe, he puts scientologists to shame with his delivery

I thought I would tackle The Real Life of Sebastian Knight next, as it was actually the second Nabokov I bought, our gal Lolita being the first. Maybe I am jumping the gun a bit, but what do you guys think? Who, which, when.....yada, yada, yada................

I would highly recommend Sebastian Knight in my opinion is the equal of Lolita(gasp i know!). A beautifully written story as you come to expect from Nabokov but also the structure with it's quotation and referencing of Knights work lends to a relaxed reading experience. It's also extremely funny especially the interaction with the other biographer and felt to me to have a ghost undercurrent because we know so little of V. I'd write more on it but i've got to get to class

 

[pontalba]

I would highly recommend Sebastian Knight in my opinion is the equal of Lolita(gasp i know!). A beautifully written story as you come to expect from Nabokov but also the structure with it's quotation and referencing of Knights work lends to a relaxed reading experience. It's also extremely funny especially the interaction with the other biographer and felt to me to have a ghost undercurrent because we know so little of V. I'd write more on it but i've got to get to class

Its always good to know ones vibes are still in working order!
Thanks Ms.
And well you should gasp!!

 

[StillILearn]

Went to the Carson City Borders yesterday; they didn't have Sebastian Knight so I bought Speak Memory instead. (This bodes well for Amazon.) I'm still stammering out VN's name in such a manner that our local librarians are thinking I've been vacationing in Lithuania.

 

[Peder]

Hi Ms.!

I fear that by moving outside of Nabokov himself i'd predjudice any works of his i will read in the future. I will eventually read american/russian years, come round to his

I feel that way. I generally ignore introductions etc in books I read, preferring to read only the words the author himself intended to be read. Plus I don't generally really understand Introductions anyway until after I have read the book.

Hehe, he puts scientologists to shame with his delivery

RTOFL I'm glad to see you have the proper degree of reverence!
And ya gotta watch that SIL! She's a live one!
/Big broad appreciative ear-to-ear just-kidding grin/​

I would highly recommend Sebastian Knight in my opinion is the equal of Lolita(gasp i know!). A beautifully written story as you come to expect from Nabokov but also the structure with it's quotation and referencing of Knights work lends to a relaxed reading experience. It's also extremely funny especially the interaction with the other biographer and felt to me to have a ghost undercurrent because we know so little of V. I'd write more on it but i've got to get to class

That recommendation sounds great to me! It definitely puts the drab back-cover blurb in the shade. And I really do hope you can participate in the discussion to the max. -- especially since you will be the one who has read the book.

Glad to hear from you again,
Peder

 

[Peder]

Went to the Carson City Borders yesterday; they didn't have Sebastian Knight so I bought Speak Memory instead. (This bodes well for Amazon.) I'm still stammering out VN's name in such a manner that our local librarians are thinking I've been vacationing in Lithuania.

Hey SIL,
How ya bin?
And how's the Carson City Borders? Any coffee shop?
As for that pronounciation, don't worry. Pretty soon you'll have Lithuanian down pat.
But I can't resist! How are you feeling about another book? Reading another book that is. I know what you feel like doing with the one you have just read.

Peder

 

[pontalba]

The die is cast.

I'll start TRLOSK today/tonight.

 

[Peder]

The die is cast.

I'll start TRLOSK today/tonight.

Pontalba: I'll join that. It sounds like the 'opposition' can at best manage a tie. Unless they really lie down, kick and scream.

StillILearn: I hope we can prevail on you for one more book? This one as good as Lolita, the man says! I'll send you a copy if Borders can't find the one they have.

Steffee, Breaca: Any chance for Sebastian Knight?

Anyone else?

Meanwhile, Glory is still open for business.
Peder

 

[Ms.]

Its always good to know ones vibes are still in working order!
Thanks Ms.
And well you should gasp!!

Oh god,i don't wish to oversell the novel and upon reflection i don't think you'll all view it as an equal to Lolita. Personal preference coupled with not having read Lolita in over a year leads me to say such things.

Went to the Carson City Borders yesterday; they didn't have Sebastian Knight so I bought Speak Memory instead. (This bodes well for Amazon.) I'm still stammering out VN's name in such a manner that our local librarians are thinking I've been vacationing in Lithuania.

Speak, Memory is excellent from the related incidents to allusions to his works (Pale Fire being especially noticeable). One of my favourite extracts from it being.....

<tt>The following passage is not for the general read, but for the particular idiot who,because he lost a fortune in some crash,thinks he understands me.

My old (since 1917) quarrel with the Soviet dictatorship is wholly unrelated to any question of property. My contempt for the emigre who 'hates the Reds' because they 'stole' his money and land is complete. The nostalgia I have been cherishing all these years is a hypertrophied sense of lost childhood,not sorry for lost banknotes.

And finally: I reserve for myself the right to yearn after an ecologial niche:

.... Beneath the sky
Of my American to sigh
For one locality in Russia.



The general reader may now resume.</tt>

I appreciate the switch from Ms to Ms.

Thank you <3

 

[Peder]

Oh god,i don't wish to oversell the novel and upon reflection i don't think you'll all view it as an equal to Lolita. Personal preference coupled with not having read Lolita in over a year leads me to say such things.

Ms.
No worry! We generally have opinions that are all over the place anyway (I think ) and nobody gets upset. Yours will fit right in.
Having done 30 pages now, I have to say I find it fascinating! Especially the narrator's manner.
Peder

 

[pontalba]

Ms.
No worry! We generally have opinions that are all over the place anyway (I think ) and nobody gets upset. Yours will fit right in.
Having done 30 pages now, I have to say I find it fascinating! Especially the narrator's manner.
Peder

Yup. Yup. Oh, and Yup! 'cept I am up to p.41 and lovin' it!

Sebastian moves sooo much smoother than Glory does, IM(H)O. It possesses the smooth, flowing quality of Lolita but so far with out the angst. I'm a waitin for it though.....heh, heh. heh.....

So fear not Ms. its all good.....

 

[Peder]

I am up to p.41 and lovin' it!

Pontalba,
I won't be around much today. But I should make good progress on the book, with at least a couple hours of reading time here and there on my trip.
Have a good day,
We'll compare pages later
Peder

 

[pontalba]

Pontalba,
I won't be around much today. But I should make good progress on the book, with at least a couple hours of reading time here and there on my trip.
Have a good day,
We'll compare pages later
Peder

Early Bird Person! LOL
Hope you're able to get a lot of Sebastian reading in today! I'm going to try to as well.

SIL?? Were ya able to get SK yet? I'm tellin' ya kiddo, its really good!

 

[Peder]

Early Bird Person! LOL
Hope you're able to get a lot of Sebastian reading in today! I'm going to try to as well.

Pontalba,
I made good progress, to p. 114, but pepole are beginning to look at me strange whenever VN catches me by surprise and I start to laugh out loud, only to try to sitfle it and continue by shaking my head. He is too funny!
And his spoof of whom I take to be Agatha Christie (is that even possible?) sets a world record for spoofifying. Incredible!
But I'm worn out,
So cu all later,
Peder

 

[StillILearn]

Yup. Yup. Oh, and Yup! 'cept I am up to p.41 and lovin' it!

Sebastian moves sooo much smoother than Glory does, IM(H)O. It possesses the smooth, flowing quality of Lolita but so far with out the angst. I'm a waitin for it though.....heh, heh. heh.....

So fear not Ms. its all good.....

If this means I don't have to reread Glory, deal me in!

 

[pontalba]

If this means I don't have to reread Glory, deal me in!

Chicken! j/k j/k !! Yeah, I'll let you off this time, but you'll have to do 10 extra laps in the pool tomorrow!

Seriously, I think you will love Sebastian! I'm not as far along as Peder, I'm only on p.84 at present. The writing has a much smoother flow, more like Lolita, but seemingly a less complicated, or at least less angst ridden story.
oh good grief, I'm repeating myself.....oy.

Peder Ya mean people are just beginning to look at you funny....??? And here I thought we were all in the same boat all along! They've been looking at me funny for years. I used to ride the bus on Canal St. into the city (N.O.) to go downtown to work, of course I had a book or two stashed in my purse, and yes giggling did occur at the most inopportune times.