Vladimir Nabokov : Novels and Memoirs 1941-1951 : The Real Life of Sebastian Knight, Bend Sinister, Speak, Memory (Library of America) [Hardcover]

Vladimir Nabokov (Author), Brian Boyd (Editor)

Book Description

Series: Library of America | Publication Date: October 1, 1996

After a brilliant literary career in Russian, Vladimir Nabokov came to the United States and went on to an even more brilliant one in English--earning a place as one of the greatest writers of his adopted home. Between 1941 and 1974 he published the autobiography and eight novels now collected by The Library of America in an authoritative three-volume set. "The Real Life of Sebastian Knight" is a tantalizing literary mystery in which a writer's half brother searches to unravel the enigma of the famous novelist's life. "Bend Sinister," Nabokov's most explicitly political novel, is the haunting, dreamlike story of a quiet philosophy professor caught up in the bureaucratic terror of a totalitarian police state. "Speak, Memory" is the dazzling memoir of Nabokov's childhood in imperial Russia amd exile in Europe. The texts in this volume have been corrected based on the author's own copies. Two companion volumes collect "Lolita," "Pnin," "Pale Fire," and "Lolita: A Screenplay," and "Ada," "Transparent Things," and "Look at the Harlequins!"

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

The publication of this unprecedented three-volume set marks the first time the Library of America has offered works by a foreign-born author. Though a native of Russia, Nabokov easily could be considered an American by osmosis, since he wrote many of his major works while living on U.S. soil. This trilogy contains all his American fiction and nonfiction writings and incorporates the corrections the author added to his personal editions. This also contains scholarly notes and a chronology by leading Nabokov biographer Brian Boyd.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Language Notes

Text: English, Russian (translation) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 710 pages
• Publisher: Library of America (October 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1883011183
• ISBN-13: 978-1883011185
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #444,411 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Real Nabokov, July 4, 2005

By 

E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Vladimir Nabokov : Novels and Memoirs 1941-1951 : The Real Life of Sebastian Knight, Bend Sinister, Speak, Memory (Library of America) (Hardcover)

It's a sad fact that Vladimir Nabokov is still thought primarily as the guy who wrote a book about a middle-aged man's crush on a preteen girl. What that fails to note is that Nabokov, a Russian expatriate who spent many years in America, also wrote many other novels that were often even more groundbreaking than "Lolita."

Three of them were compiled into "Novels and Memoirs 1941-1951": the horrifying political satire "Bend Sinister," the entertainingly offbeat "Real Life of Sebastian Knight," and the unique memoir "Speak Memory." These three each demonstrate why Vladimir Nabokov was one of the best writers of the 20th century.

"Bend Sinister" is the most obviously political of all the novels Nabokov wrote.
It tells the story of Krug, a philosopher in the land of Padukgrad, who is dealing with the death of his wife, and having to raise his young son alone. To make things worse, an inept inventor's son named Paduk, has become the dictator. Worse, Krug is somehow in Paduk's way -- and Paduk will do anything to get Krug to endorse him. Literally, anything.

"The Real Life of Sebastian Knight" has a lighter tone than "Bend Sinister," with an unnamed narrator searching for clues about the true persona of his brother, Sebastian Knight, a famed writer. It ends up becoming a superb satire/detective story, looking at the faint traces that biographers snatch at, but which can only give a tiny look at the whole.

"Speak Memory" is an entirely different kind of book -- it's all about Nabokov himself. He reexamines his colorful life, but not so much through basic experiences and facts. Instead, he looks at how he made sense of the world, whether as a privileged child, a man torn up by the Russian Revolution, and finally finding sanctuary in another land.

It might come as a surprise that the famous "Lolita," which caused such a scandal at the time, is actually one of Nabokov's less complex books. He dabbled in metafiction, existentialism, autobiography, and almost always in satire. And there are almost always layers on layers of meaning in his books -- these aren't the exception.

His writing is dense, lush and detailed, and he seems almost to blur the line between fantasy and reality, especially since "Bend Sinister" takes little bits from various totalitarian governments. Even stranger, Krug apparently discovers that he is actually Nabokov's creation, and has an existential crisis. And Nabokov's self-examination is as fascinating as any bestselling novel, where he revisits those bizarre thoughts that we all have as children.

A harrowing political thriller, an amusing satire, and an intriguing autobiography make up "Novels and Memoirs 1941-1951." A writer like no other, and three books like no other.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Incomparable, April 14, 2011

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atmospheric "atmos" - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Vladimir Nabokov : Novels and Memoirs 1941-1951 : The Real Life of Sebastian Knight, Bend Sinister, Speak, Memory (Library of America) (Hardcover)

The two novels and autobiography in this volume are quirky, brilliant, tragicomic, and written in incomparable prose. One of the things not often mentioned about Nabokov is how hilarious he can be. Enjoy!--but not if you like meat-and-potatoes realism or mainstream tales of self-pity.

5.0 out of 5 stars A Russian cosmopolitan among American classics, March 7, 2011

By 

Carlos Franz Thorud - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Vladimir Nabokov : Novels and Memoirs 1941-1951 : The Real Life of Sebastian Knight, Bend Sinister, Speak, Memory (Library of America) (Hardcover)

One must celebrate those plural minds who decided that a Russian exile and cosmopolitan writer could have a home among American classics. Navokob's elegant prose and humanistic sensitivity enhances the scope of The Library of America, and more than deserves these beautiful tomes.