Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
What a drastic contrast between this novel and Lolita! Reading the two books close together gives some good insight to Nabokov's prowess as a writer and character builder. Where Humbert is vile, conniving, and arrogant, Timofey Pnin is sweet, endearing, quixotic. I was utterly charmed by Pnin and really cared about him! Like when Pnin is washing the dishes and drops the nutcracker into the sink and you think it is the punch bowl-- I gasped outloud and almost cried. And then felt such relief when it was just the goblet. There are few characters I've ever been this emotionally invested in. Here are some of my favorite snapshots that illustrate who he is:
-when as a child he has a "tussle with the wallpaper" during a fever and cannot fall asleep because he is so plagued by the incomprehensibility of the patterned design
-when he stops pondering the mechanisms of the universe to help a haughty and unappreciative squirrel-- who is eerily similar to his ex-wife-- drink from a water fountain
-when his landlady tries to help him understand a magazine comic to cheer him up and he assumes the speech bubbles are depictions of atomic bomb explosions
-when he delightfully plods away in the library on his research, wearing rubber gloves to avoid the static of metal files and nearly crumbled in despair when he realizes he left an index card of notes in a 2500 page volume-- thinking he must meticulously comb the book page by page-- until a kind soul comes by, up-ends the book, and shakes the index card out.
Pnin is heroically selfless, oblivious and optimistic. I think he is so refreshing as a character because he doesn't think the world owes him anything and he is purely kind. He says at one point "Is sorrow not, one asks, the only thing in the world people really possess?" I felt protective of this sweet soul and disdainful of the many characters that misuse him, snicker at him, and walk all over him. It is obvious that Nabokov wrote him lovingly and with serious fondness.
The writing is just so impressive and effortlessly gorgeous. This guy was a genius. I can't think of anyone else that writes so beautifully in their mother tongue as well as in another language. And who else can describe a mechanical pencil sharpener with such dazzling poetry?! And I quote:
"That highly satisfying, highly philosophical implement that goes ticonderoga-ticonderoga, feeding on the yellow finish and sweet wood, and ends up in a kind of soundlessly spinning ethereal void as we all must."
This book is a masterpiece.
-when as a child he has a "tussle with the wallpaper" during a fever and cannot fall asleep because he is so plagued by the incomprehensibility of the patterned design
-when he stops pondering the mechanisms of the universe to help a haughty and unappreciative squirrel-- who is eerily similar to his ex-wife-- drink from a water fountain
-when his landlady tries to help him understand a magazine comic to cheer him up and he assumes the speech bubbles are depictions of atomic bomb explosions
-when he delightfully plods away in the library on his research, wearing rubber gloves to avoid the static of metal files and nearly crumbled in despair when he realizes he left an index card of notes in a 2500 page volume-- thinking he must meticulously comb the book page by page-- until a kind soul comes by, up-ends the book, and shakes the index card out.
Pnin is heroically selfless, oblivious and optimistic. I think he is so refreshing as a character because he doesn't think the world owes him anything and he is purely kind. He says at one point "Is sorrow not, one asks, the only thing in the world people really possess?" I felt protective of this sweet soul and disdainful of the many characters that misuse him, snicker at him, and walk all over him. It is obvious that Nabokov wrote him lovingly and with serious fondness.
The writing is just so impressive and effortlessly gorgeous. This guy was a genius. I can't think of anyone else that writes so beautifully in their mother tongue as well as in another language. And who else can describe a mechanical pencil sharpener with such dazzling poetry?! And I quote:
"That highly satisfying, highly philosophical implement that goes ticonderoga-ticonderoga, feeding on the yellow finish and sweet wood, and ends up in a kind of soundlessly spinning ethereal void as we all must."
This book is a masterpiece.
funny
lighthearted
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
To jedna z bardziej "przyziemnych" książek Mistrza, jednak i tak jest niesamowicie przemyślana i kryje w sobie treści, których nie da się wyłapać na pierwszy rzut oka.
Vaguely disappointing. I was expecting something along the lines of Pale Fire, but Pnin was lacking the brilliant satire and unreliable narrator that made that book brilliant. Instead, it is a tepid tale of the pathetic but gentle Pnin and his life as a teacher in a small, Eastern college in the 50s. The story is told in mostly unrelated vignettes, whose main point seems to be to make fun of Pnin's faulty English, sentimentality, and general cluelessness. All of which left me cold and unimpressed.
The one interesting aspect of the book is the last chapter, when the undisclosed narrator takes up the tale. We are left with some interesting questions (who is the narrator? why does Pnin appear to dislike him, when one of his defining characteristics is that he likes everybody? what do we really know about Pnin, given his tale is told by a removed, unknown, and disliked narrator?), but they are not dealt with and, for me, it was a case of "too little, too late".
This is my 4th Nabakov and I think I have reached the conclusion that Pale Fire was amazing and everything else, not so much. I doubt I will be reading any more of his works.
The one interesting aspect of the book is the last chapter, when the undisclosed narrator takes up the tale. We are left with some interesting questions (who is the narrator? why does Pnin appear to dislike him, when one of his defining characteristics is that he likes everybody? what do we really know about Pnin, given his tale is told by a removed, unknown, and disliked narrator?), but they are not dealt with and, for me, it was a case of "too little, too late".
This is my 4th Nabakov and I think I have reached the conclusion that Pale Fire was amazing and everything else, not so much. I doubt I will be reading any more of his works.
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
slow-paced
I absolutely loved this book. It’s amazing that English was not Nabakov’s first language. It’s a book that you have to read slowly, but it’s so rewarding. I went from laughing at the absurdity of Pnin at the beginning to really feeling for him, understanding his background and rooting for him by the end. This book is like a roadmap for the reader to be a better and more compassionate person. I mean, we are all freaks, aren’t we? But if someone takes the time to understand us, understand our history and life challenges, maybe they will come to feel for us and root for us, as well.
funny
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
sad
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:
Yes
funny
My first Nabokov! So hilarious and such enjoyable and jam packed prose. I’m glad I chose this for my first Nabokov bc it was truly delightful and now I feel very fond of him.