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3.82 AVERAGE
3.82 AVERAGE
Non-challenge book: I started reading this to fill the category of "Set in a BRIC country" but it turned out, it was just set in the US so I couldn't bring myself to count it. I did however really want to finish it, and I'm glad I did. The Pnin character was so lovely and sympathetic and is probably a good indication of what I'll be like in a decade or two. That seems like a good thing but it probably is not. A great way to start Nabakov.
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Warm, funny, gentle tale of Pnin a Russian emigre working in an American college. Beautifully told. Nothing much happens but it doesn’t matter when the telling is so engrossing. Nabokov is a genius.
challenging
funny
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
A charming book about a sad clown of a man called Pnin. Nabakov is a very skilled writer particularly given that English was a second language. Genuinely funny, indeed one scene made me giggle for a full minute. Excellent if a bit muddled in the middle.
Brilliant, brilliant book. Nearly 5 stars; I might bump it to 5 when I think about it more. Nabokov has reached top ten authors for me.
One of the big afterthought questions I think is posed here—and maybe posed in most of Nabokov's most famous books—is the importance of who is telling the story. By the end of Pnin's tale, it's hard to separate his beautiful sincerity and his somewhat obnoxious buffoonery. But our narrator turns out to be much less than objective. He has stakes, investments, and personal reasons to talk about Pnin, seemingly behind his back.
I'll be thinking about this one for a while.
One of the big afterthought questions I think is posed here—and maybe posed in most of Nabokov's most famous books—is the importance of who is telling the story. By the end of Pnin's tale, it's hard to separate his beautiful sincerity and his somewhat obnoxious buffoonery. But our narrator turns out to be much less than objective. He has stakes, investments, and personal reasons to talk about Pnin, seemingly behind his back.
I'll be thinking about this one for a while.
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Video review https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pBqs4oXJlaY&feature=youtu.be
funny
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Very funny, you can definitely tell the gaps from the New Yorker and Novel version but I don’t mind it