In 'Verses and Versions' we have not only a sampler of the problems and possibilities of literary translation, as demonstrated by someone who wrote and translated in three languages for more than 60 years, but also an authoritative contribution to Nabokov's literary legacy...this is a book, part of the oeuvre, that true Nabokovians will want.--Alexander Theroux"Los Angeles Times" (12/21/2008)
From Vladimir Nabokov, one of the most talented translators of all time, comes
Verses and Versions -- at long last, the realization of Nabokov's wish to collect and publish his poetry translations with selections fromEvgeniy Baratïnski * Konstantin Batyushkov * Rémi Belleau * Aleksandr Blok * Anton Delvig * Gavrila Derzhavin * Afanasiy Fet * Vladislav Hodasevich * Nikolay Karamzin * Vilgelm Kyuhelbeker * Mihail Lermontov * Mihail Lomonosov * Osip Mandelshtam * Nikolay Nekrasov * Bulat Okudzhava * Aleksandr Pushkin * Henri de Régnier * Fyodor Tyutchev * Vasiliy Zhukovski
PRAISE FOR THE TRANSLATIONS OF VLADIMIR NABOKOV
"It was Nabokov's gift to bring paradise wherever he alighted."?John Updike
"As entertaining as Rabelais, as dependable as the O.E.D. What Nabokov has done is to throw a bridge between Russian and American culture."?The Virginia Quarterly Review
"Nabokov... is not merely a translator; he is also a truly remarkable teacher." ? Time Magazine
"Mr. Nabokov has not merely rendered the most precious gem of Russia's poetic heritage into limpid, literal poetic translation. He has given Pushkin's wondrous lines the glow and sparkle of their Russian original." --
The New York Times