Vladimir Nabokov
An image from The Luzhin Defence, one of the productions that also features Vladimir Nabokov.
Vladimir Nabokov

Vladimir Nabokov

April 22, 1899 — Saint Petersburg, Russian Empire [now Russia]

Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov (1899-1977) was a Russian-born multilingual novelist, poet, translator, critic and entomologist considered the foremost of the post-1917 émigré authors. Born in Imperial Russia in 1899, Nabokov wrote his first nine novels in Russian while living in Berlin. He achieved international acclaim and prominence after moving to the United States, where he began writing in English. Nabokov was a professor of Russian literature at Cornell University from 1948 to 1959, before returning to Europe in 1961, where he settled in Montreux, Switzerland.

Beginning with King, Queen, Knave (1928), his writing began to feature intricate stylistic devices. His novels are principally concerned with the problem of art itself, presented in various disguises, as in Invitation to a Beheading (1938). Parody is frequent in The Gift (1937–38) and later works. His novels written in English include the notorious best seller Lolita (1955), which brought him wealth and international fame; Pale Fire (1962); and Ada (1969). His episodic novel about an émigré professor of Russian in the United States, Pnin (1957), is to some extent based on his experiences as a literature professor. His critical works include a monumental translation of and commentary on Aleksandr Pushkin’s Evgeny Onegin.

Lolita

Lolita

1962

Lolita

Lolita

1997

Russian Lolita

Russian Lolita

2007

Despair

Despair

1978

The Luzhin Defence

The Luzhin Defence

2000

King, Queen, Knave

King, Queen, Knave

1972

Longing for Sandy Bay

Longing for Sandy Bay

2011

Laughter in the Dark

Laughter in the Dark

1969