Vladimir Nabokov

8 summariesLiterary Fiction, Romance, Fiction

Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov, also known by the pen name Vladimir Sirin, was an expatriate Russian and Russian-American novelist, poet, translator, and entomologist. Born in Imperial Russia in 1899, Nabokov wrote his first nine novels in Russian (1926–1938) while living in Berlin, where he met his wife. He achieved international acclaim and prominence after moving to the United States, where he began writing in English. Nabokov became an American citizen in 1945 and lived mostly on the East Coast before returning to Europe in 1961, where he settled in Montreux, Switzerland.

Books by Vladimir Nabokov

8 books available

Pale Fire
Vladimir Nabokov
4.1 (43k) average on GoodreadsLiterary Fiction
A reclusive scholar's increasingly unhinged annotations on his deceased neighbor's 999-line poem unveil a tale of mistaken identity, exile, and the tricky nature of interpretation.
Pnin
Vladimir Nabokov
3.9 (18k) average on GoodreadsLiterary Fiction
A bumbling Russian émigré professor navigates the absurdities of American academia, from dental problems to lost trains and linguistic errors, all while keeping his old-world charm.
Laughter in the Dark
Vladimir Nabokov
4.0 (13k) average on GoodreadsLiterary Fiction
An aging art critic's pursuit of a manipulative teenage mistress in Weimar-era Berlin spirals into a chilling descent of folly, betrayal, and destruction, orchestrated by a rival.
Mary
Vladimir Nabokov
3.7 (5k) average on GoodreadsLiterary Fiction
In a sad Berlin rooming house, a young Russian émigré remembers his first love, Mary, only to find her unappealing husband is his next-door neighbor, waiting for her.
The Real Life of Sebastian Knight
Vladimir Nabokov
3.9 (5k) average on GoodreadsLiterary Fiction
After his famous brother's death, a man tries to write his biography, uncovering hidden loves and elusive truths, while reflecting the intricate plots of the novels he seeks to understand.
Bend Sinister
Vladimir Nabokov
3.8 (4k) average on GoodreadsLiterary Fiction
In a world suffocated by the tyrannical 'Average Man' party, a grieving philosopher becomes the last bastion of individualism against his toad-like school enemy, only to discover the chilling power of a state machine far greater than its grotesque orchestrator.
Transparent Things
Vladimir Nabokov
3.7 (3k) average on GoodreadsFiction
In Nabokov's "Transparent Things," a gawky publisher's four Swiss trips become a haunting spiral of love, murder, madness, and a desperate attempt to find a past as elusive and fragmented as the objects he observes.
Glory
Vladimir Nabokov
3.7 (2k) average on GoodreadsLiterary Fiction
A lovelorn Russian émigré, desperate to impress a woman and escape a life of perceived insignificance, embarks on a quixotic and ultimately tragic quest to illegally re-enter the Soviet Union.