1Deskdude
Thinking about firing up Speak Memory for the first time. Any comments on the book? Anyone care to join me?
3kidzdoc
Newbie here. I do plan to read Speak, Memory, but I'll probably won't get to it before March.
4DanMat
Transparent Things, Speak Memory and a bunch of the short stories are all I have left to read of Nabokov (coincidently, I was thumbing through Man from the USSR and other Plays last evening before I fell asleep (there's an interesting essay on tragedy). I've only heard good things about Speak Memory and it will probably be the one I read next. I could read it in March or late Februrary as currently I'm making snail's paced progess through Ninety Three, then want to read House of the Dead after that. Heck, I may even have the time to squeeze in something else, though perhaps that's too ambitious as I seem to have difficulty alotting myself time to read lately.
5Deskdude
Well, I broke into it last night, though I didn't get far enough to share an opinion. Good to hear it's on other folks' list. I'll chime-in with an update before too long. Thanks for the follow-up! :)
6timspalding
Fantastic book. I need to reread it. It's been a decade at least.
7Deskdude
So, I'm not quite finished with Speak Memory, but I'll probably wrap it up tomorrow given that I probably only have about 30 pages to go. I'll share my impression for what it's worth:
This book has what I love about Nabokov - amazing language, description...just beautiful writing. On the other hand, this book has been relatively easy for me to put down. I think this is more a fault of my uninformed expectations. I presumed that the autobiography would dwell more on his writing and accompanying success, but it actually focuses on his childhood --people and experiences set against a backdrop of political turmoil and national upheaval. I find the book interesting and worthwhile simply because it's an intimate look into a time and culture I would have never known (and undoubtedly things that were more important to Nabokov than his own books). I just wish it had included that "director's commentary" I was hoping for.
This book has what I love about Nabokov - amazing language, description...just beautiful writing. On the other hand, this book has been relatively easy for me to put down. I think this is more a fault of my uninformed expectations. I presumed that the autobiography would dwell more on his writing and accompanying success, but it actually focuses on his childhood --people and experiences set against a backdrop of political turmoil and national upheaval. I find the book interesting and worthwhile simply because it's an intimate look into a time and culture I would have never known (and undoubtedly things that were more important to Nabokov than his own books). I just wish it had included that "director's commentary" I was hoping for.
