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Vera: Mrs. Vladimir Nabokov
Vera: Mrs. Vladimir Nabokov | Stacy Schiff
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Winner of the 2000 Pulitzer Prize for biography and hailed by critics as both -monumental- (The Boston Globe) and -utterly romantic- (New York magazine), Stacy Schiff's Vera (Mrs. Vladimir Nabokov) brings to shimmering life one of the greatest literary love stories of our time. Vladimir Nabokov--the emigre author of Lolita; Pale Fire; and Speak, Memory--wrote his books first for himself, second for his wife, Vera, and third for no one at all. -Without my wife, - he once noted, -I wouldn't have written a single novel.- Set in prewar Europe and postwar America, spanning much of the century, the story of the Nabokovs' fifty-two-year marriage reads as vividly as a novel. Vera, both beautiful and brilliant, is its outsized heroine--a woman who loves as deeply and intelligently as did the great romantic heroines of Austen and Tolstoy. Stacy Schiff's Vera is a triumph of the biographical form.
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blurb
Graywacke
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#12Booksof2021
#December

I spent two years on a Nabokov theme, reading all of his novels, with 2021 reading his English language novels. This biography, which is really special, was so meaningful to me in that context. It was possibly my favorite book of my Nabokov theme. It‘s a great book to complete this #12Booksof2021 list.

Andrew65 Looks good. 2y
Graywacke @Andrew65 thanks so much for running this, and, impressively and kindly, staying on top of everyone‘s posts! 2y
Andrew65 @Graywacke Try my best. 😊 It has been good to review reading from last year and picking new books from others posts to read next year. 2y
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Graywacke
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Pickpick

Schiff is at her best writing slow and immersive, and with a subject complicated and fascinating enough to adapt to that. She pulled it off with Benjamin Franklin in Paris, and she does it here with the strikingly intelligent, proudly Jewish, fiercely humble partner of Vladimir Nabokov. She was his muse, caretaker, typist and his first and best reader. A really beautiful book.

vivastory When I saw Schiff in '16 she was speaking mostly about her book on the Salem witch trials, but she also spoke about her other works, including this one. It sounded fascinating! 2y
Graywacke @vivastory cool that you got to see her speak and glad she was still talking about this one ~17 years after she originally published it (1999) 2y
batsy Lovely review. This sounds like it would be fascinating just to learn about their relationship, even I've only read just the one Nabokov. 2y
Graywacke @batsy thanks. I think it‘s a biography that works even if you haven‘t read anything by him. (Of course it might nudge you to read something…like Pnin…everyone should read Pnin 🙂) 2y
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Graywacke
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“he believed God looks after entomologists as he does drunkards.”

Flaneurette love this quote! stacked

2y
Graywacke @Flaneurette the whole paragraph is entertaining, but that one line really charmed me. This book is terrific. So you know, it‘s slow, but a really nice kind of slow. A lets-spend-some-time-with-these-people slow. 2y
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Graywacke
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‘"Véra, show him what you have in your handbag," Vladimir directed, with what Steinberg recognized as immense pride. Véra extracted the Browning ... To the great artist's eye the gesture was ripe with symbolism. It seemed as if Véra had been appointed the keeper of her husband's virtue. Véra would have shuddered at the mention of symbolism, but … ‘

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Graywacke
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Starting this next. I‘ve had great and also unreadable experiences with Schiff. Hoping for the former.

review
Jen2
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Pickpick

Excellent book!!!

Crazeedi I have this on my shelf tbr! 5y
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Jen2
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Seeing Stacy Schiff tonight!!!!

mischa This has been sitting on my TBR for about 12 months. I keep getting distracted by other books. 😜 8y
mjdowens I just got this ebook a few weeks ago. I have not got too much read yet, but so far I am intrigued. 8y
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MichelleRichmond

Even her detractors held that Vera Nabokov participated in her husband's work to an unprecedented degree.

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