Vladimir Nabokov (1899-1977), one of the 20th century's greatest writers in both Russian and English, was born in St. Petersburg, Russia, and spent his adult life in Germany, France, the United States, and Switzerland. In addition to his literary work, he was a passionate lepidopterist and chess player. His books include Lolita, Pale Fire, The Real Light of Sebastian Knight, Laughter in the Dark, and many more. Michael Dirda, who won a Pulitzer Prize for distinguished criticism at the Washington Post Book World, is the author of An Open Book, Bound to Please, and Readings: Essays and Literary Entertainments. He lives in Silver Spring, Maryland.
Luke Daniels's reading of Nabokov's first novel written in English is over emotive and replete with tearful women and awkwardly pronounced French words. But fear not: all is as it should be-Daniels is simply capturing the tone of this classic book in which a budding literary scholar investigates the life of mysterious writer Sebastian Knight. Daniels's narration is clear, engaging, and well paced. His reading reflects the spirit of Nabokov's text, and he offers up a range of accents and voices for the characters, including French dialects that contain more than a hint of Pepe Le Pew in their florid stylizations. There may be shadings and tones of Nabokov's prose that Daniels does not entirely capture, but the comic verve of this audiobook more than makes up for any omissions and provides for thoroughly entertaining listen. A Penguin paperback. (Aug.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
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