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thechaliceofaries 's review for:
Pnin
by Vladimir Nabokov
It was the world that was absent-minded and it was Pnin whose business it was to set it straight. His life was a constant war with insensate objects that fell apart, or attacked him, or refused to function, or viciously got themselves lost as soon as they entered into the sphere of his existence.
After the brilliantly executed masterpiece that was Lolita, I had high hopes when starting Pnin. Well, my hopes were met, but not in the way that I had expected - the tender sweetness of this novel, so different to the erudite, disturbing Lolita, took me completely by surprise. Here, Nabokov takes a completely different route when presenting his protagonist to the reader: the lovable Pnin, who draws an irresistible sense of compassion and fondness almost immediately. Unlike Humbert, however, he does not need to hide behind dramatic literary hyperbole or deceptively seductive prose - instead, he shines with simple kindness and determination, even when confronted with a series of hilariously tragic misfortunes. A careless, hapless and sometimes absentminded college professor attempting with great dignity and enthusiasm to navigate America as a Russian émigré, Pnin evokes deep sympathy over the chapters while his original impression as a comic figure evolves into that of a genuinely brilliant and gentle-hearted man that's impossible not to adore.
While this novel is generally light-hearted and funny, the tenderness I felt for Pnin also made it difficult not to pity him as his misfortunes got progressively worse. He is oftentimes unaware of the jokes behind his back and mocking attitudes of the people around him. I wanted to hug him many times over and punch every asshole who laughed at or disregarded him, as he truly did deserve so much better. This book has been described as a tragicomedy, but I do feel that it leans slightly more heavily on the tragedy side, for me at least. Nevertheless, I thoroughly enjoyed being Pnin's friend (and his tireless cheerleader) through the duration of the story, and I doubt that I will ever get tired of Nabokov's beautiful, celestial writing.
After the brilliantly executed masterpiece that was Lolita, I had high hopes when starting Pnin. Well, my hopes were met, but not in the way that I had expected - the tender sweetness of this novel, so different to the erudite, disturbing Lolita, took me completely by surprise. Here, Nabokov takes a completely different route when presenting his protagonist to the reader: the lovable Pnin, who draws an irresistible sense of compassion and fondness almost immediately. Unlike Humbert, however, he does not need to hide behind dramatic literary hyperbole or deceptively seductive prose - instead, he shines with simple kindness and determination, even when confronted with a series of hilariously tragic misfortunes. A careless, hapless and sometimes absentminded college professor attempting with great dignity and enthusiasm to navigate America as a Russian émigré, Pnin evokes deep sympathy over the chapters while his original impression as a comic figure evolves into that of a genuinely brilliant and gentle-hearted man that's impossible not to adore.
While this novel is generally light-hearted and funny, the tenderness I felt for Pnin also made it difficult not to pity him as his misfortunes got progressively worse. He is oftentimes unaware of the jokes behind his back and mocking attitudes of the people around him. I wanted to hug him many times over and punch every asshole who laughed at or disregarded him, as he truly did deserve so much better. This book has been described as a tragicomedy, but I do feel that it leans slightly more heavily on the tragedy side, for me at least. Nevertheless, I thoroughly enjoyed being Pnin's friend (and his tireless cheerleader) through the duration of the story, and I doubt that I will ever get tired of Nabokov's beautiful, celestial writing.