Subject: (urth) Nabokov: Pale Fire

From: Michael Straight <straight at email.unc.edu>
Date: Wed, 16 Apr 2003 15:46:09 +0000

I just finished "Pale Fire" by Nabokov.   I read it because someone said
"If you like Wolfe you'll like this," and it was mentioned a while back
when we tried to put together a reading list of books that would help you
appreciate Wolfe (search the archives for "Wolfe Library").

I think this book hit the Gene-Wolfe-Pleasure-Centers in my brain more
than any other book not written by Wolfe.  It's got the ultimate
unreliable narrator, ambiguous plot puzzles left for the reader to put
together, fun games with the text (the index is great -- I loved the bit
about the crown jewels, ghosts, and absolutely beautiful writing.  I was
also surprised that it was not a hard book to read, certainly not as hard
as some of Wolfe's.

The only drawback is it might make you more self-conscous about spinning
theories about Wolfe's stories.

Are there any other Nabokov books you would recommend for Wolfe fans (or
just for me)?

-- Rostrum

--

---

From: Terry Lago <tlago at chass.utoronto.ca>
Date: Wed, 16 Apr 2003 15:56:49 +0000

I *love* _Pale Fire_...definitely Nabokov's best...at least of what I've
read so far. I'd say the other must-read is the infamous _Lolita_. It's a
beautifully written book (even though the subject matter is rather ugly)
though it certainly has fewer puzzles than _Pale Fire_.

T.

-----Original Message-----
From: Michael Straight [mailto:straight at email.unc.edu] 
Sent: Wednesday, April 16, 2003 11:46 AM
To: urth at urth.net
Subject: (urth) Nabokov: Pale Fire

-- Rostrum

-- 

--

---

From: Dan'l Danehy-Oakes <katbarx at hotmail.com>
Date: Wed, 16 Apr 2003 16:10:10 +0000

Rostrum writes (excerpt, excerpt):

>I was also surprised that [Pale Fire] was not a hard book to read,
>certainly not as hard as some of Wolfe's.

Alternative view: I tried three times to read PALE FIRE and never
once succeeded in getting more than 20 pages into it. It is, to me,
one of the most opaque pieces of writing in the world. Which was a
damn shame, as I could see that there's a lot of stuff in there that
I would enjoy -- would "tickle the Wolfe pleasure centers" -- but
Nabokov's writing lies in a range that I can't process for some
reason.

(I'll try again in a few years, I'm sure. Sometimes things like
this suddenly clear up. The first few times I tried to read Charles
Harness's THE ROSE -- which, by the way, I recommend very, very
highly -- I had the same experience; when I turned 30 it suddenly
became a transcendant reading experience. Some things I just have
to grow into, I guess.)

>theories about Wolfe's stories.

I suppose that some people might consider this a drawback. 8*)

Hey, has anyone mentioned THE NAME OF THE ROSE as a rather Lupine
book in many ways?

_________________________________________________________________
The new MSN 8: advanced junk mail protection and 2 months FREE*  
http://join.msn.com/?page=features/junkmail

--

---

From: gordon meuse <gordanus at hotmail.com>
Date: Wed, 16 Apr 2003 18:29:16 +0000

For those who have either read "Pale Fire" or have attempted it and put it 
down, I highly recommend "Nabokov's Pale Fire", by D. Boyd. I admit that I 
read it before I read Pale Fire, but it is such a good read itself and 
quotes extensively from Pale Fire itself. It attempts to solve one of the 
most complicated literary puzzles ever. His solution is complex and almost 
unbelievable, but very well-documented. You will never read Nabokov the same 
ever again.

>From: "Dan'l Danehy-Oakes" <katbarx at hotmail.com>
>Reply-To: urth at urth.net
>To: urth at urth.net
>Subject: Re: (urth) Nabokov: Pale Fire
>Date: Wed, 16 Apr 2003 09:10:10 -0700
>

_________________________________________________________________
STOP MORE SPAM with the new MSN 8 and get 2 months FREE*  
http://join.msn.com/?page=features/junkmail

--

---

From: Gareth Jelley <gjelley at btopenworld.com>
Date: Wed, 16 Apr 2003 21:31:47 +0000

> Are there any other Nabokov books you would recommend for Wolfe fans (or

Not sure about Nabokov, but another author who does the unreliable narrator
very well and plays games with the reader is Kazuo Ishiguro. I'd recommend
'The Unconsoled', 'Remains of the Day', and 'When We Were Orphans'
particularly highly - they might hit the Wolfe-pleasure-centres you refer to
:o)

Best,

G.

--