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Re: I think Nabakov would agree with you, Victor...

By one of those quirks of timing, both Nabakov and Pasternak had books at the top of the bestseller lists in 1957: Nabakov's "Lolita" and Pasternak's "Doctor Zhivago." Boyd's biography "Vladimir Nabakov: The American Years" discusses how it vexed Nabakov to no end that Pasternak's work had better reviews and higher sales. He would stand around and read passages aloud in both Russian and English to demonstrate that not only was Pasternak's original prose awful, but that the English translation only added to the sludge! Nabakov also felt that Pasternak's poetry was amazing, and thought it sad that the great writer was being so highly acclaimed for his what could very well be his worst work.

Time of course has altered our perceptions: "Lolita" is taught in colleges and universities everywhere, it can be found in most any bookstore. I doubt we shall ever see a book titled "Reading Doctor Zhivago in Iran."


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