false 6267192 5 <p>At last: Vladimir Nabokov’s final and unfinished novel, in print—thirty years after his death, years in which the fate of <i>The Original of Laura </i>was in constant and closely watched question.<br><br>When Nabokov died in 1977, he left instructions for his heirs to burn the 138 handwritten index cards that made up the rough draft of <i>The Original of Laura</i>. But Nabokov’s wife, Vera, couldn’t bear to destroy her husband’s last work, and when she died, the fate of the manuscript fell to her son. Dmitri Nabokov, now seventy-four— the Russian novelist’s only surviving heir, and translator of many of his books—has struggled for decades with the decision of whether to honor his father’s wish or preserve for posterity the last piece of writing of one of the greatest writers of the twentieth century. His decision finally to allow publication will be passionately welcomed by both scholars and general readers. And the ingenious format of the book (which includes removable facsimiles of the index cards) will make an even more extraordinary occasion of this publishing event.<br><br>In its fragmented narrative—dark yet playful, preoccupied with mortality—we are given one last experience of a writer’s unparalleled creativity, a glimpse of his last days, and a body of work finding its apotheosis.</p> 6450471 book 3 11 2009 The Original of Laura total:18|5:5|4:8|3:3|2:1|1:1| 18 69 177 14 4 0 false false Sat Nov 21 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sat Nov 21 06:13:58 -0800 2009 Sat Nov 21 06:55:05 -0800 2009 more...]]> 0 2 false false Tue Nov 17 21:28:43 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 20 15:16:48 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Wed Nov 11 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Tue Nov 10 10:42:27 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 13 12:33:01 -0800 2009 T.O.O.L. reminded me, in it's "construction," more of Fernando Pessoa than it did of Vladimir Nabokov (thoug...more...]]> 4 0 false false Fri Nov 20 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Thu Nov 12 13:56:02 -0800 2009 Sat Nov 21 06:36:09 -0800 2009 more...]]> 0 1 false false Wed Nov 18 04:53:53 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 18 05:35:40 -0800 2009 breathe. Yes, in and out.

She's here at last in all her coyly shrink-wrapped glory. Despite her undernourished adolescence she has appeared disconcertingly decked out in widow's weeds. Perhaps self-consciously aware of her literary frailty her demurely down...more...]]> 0 1 false false Tue Feb 17 14:55:18 -0800 2009 Tue Nov 10 14:46:10 -0800 2009
Card One

You couldn't get more original than Laura. Laura. Yes, she was an original, all right. One of a kind. Did they break her mold or what, pal? Or...or did it self-destruct? Still, Laura. The one and the on...more...]]> 0 0 false false Tue Sep 15 06:54:21 -0700 2009 Tue Sep 15 06:56:49 -0700 2009
I saw you again, Aurora Lee…. Your painted pout and cold gaze were, come to think of it, very like the official lips and eyes of Flora, my wayward wife, and your flimsy frock of black silk might have come from her ...more...]]> 5 0 false false Thu Nov 19 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 18 18:52:06 -0800 2009 Thu Nov 19 04:59:36 -0800 2009 more...]]> 2 0 false false Mon Nov 16 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sun Nov 08 11:43:51 -0800 2009 Mon Nov 16 15:56:24 -0800 2009
It is a book to breeze through to get a feel for it. Th...more...]]> 3 0 true false Fri Nov 20 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 20 18:49:34 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 20 18:58:49 -0800 2009
Just now I'm trying t...more...]]> 0 0 false false Wed Nov 18 06:41:42 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 18 06:42:35 -0800 2009
http://www.penguin.co.uk/static/cs/uk/0/...]]> 0 0 false false Fri Nov 20 23:38:25 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 20 23:39:05 -0800 2009 http://borrowedtimes.blogspot.com/2009/1...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Nov 19 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Tue Nov 17 12:07:29 -0800 2009 Thu Nov 19 19:05:59 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Wed Nov 11 05:54:11 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 11 05:54:36 -0800 2009 3 0 false false Sat Nov 21 18:34:16 -0800 2009 Sat Nov 21 18:34:16 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Sun Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Nov 21 17:58:08 -0800 2009 Sat Nov 21 17:58:17 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Sat Nov 21 16:16:17 -0800 2009 Sat Nov 21 16:16:23 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Sat Nov 21 16:10:55 -0800 2009 Sat Nov 21 16:11:00 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Sat Nov 21 14:38:38 -0800 2009 Sat Nov 21 14:38:38 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Sat Nov 21 13:44:40 -0800 2009 Sat Nov 21 13:44:40 -0800 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=6267192