Description
Book SynopsisTrade Review"This essay collection assesses the stakes and real-world relevance of Nabokov’s writing, from his lectures and short stories to his major novels. It’s a great read if you’re a Nabokov fan, or if you’ve ever wondered, ‘Why did this guy write Lolita?'" * Literary Hub *
"These clear and dazzlingly erudite essays offer a superb introduction to the writer’s life and work."
---David Herman, Jewish Chronicle"Robert Alter’s new book
Nabokov and the Real World presents a fascinating study of the works of Vladimir Nabokov. . . . Alter’s
Nabokov and the Real World provides an engaging analysis of Nabokov’s robust body of work and artfully articulates how he weaves a tapestry of linguistic tools, literary devices, nuanced visual descriptions, and empirical classifications to create beautifully crafted stories that help us better to understand the complex spectrum of human existence."
---Leonara Cravotta, American Spectator"Alter is one of America’s most distinguished persons of letters. His primary task in
Nabokov and the Real World is to dismantle the widely-echoed theory of critics who accuse Nabokov of playing an elaborate literary game—a set of stylistic maneuvers, mannered, overwrought and arch. Alter counters that Nabokov. . .used language to awaken readers to the dense, many-layered, multi-connected reality of which we are part."
---David Luhrssen, Shepherd Express"
Nabokov and the Real World is a wonderful contribution and . . . [a] beautiful collection."
---Erik Eklund, Nabokov Online Journal
