Verses and Versions: Three Centuries of Russian Poetry. This item is unavailable.Verses and Versions: Three Centuries of Russian Poetry

Vladimir Nabokov was hailed by Salman Rushdie as the most important writer ever to cross the boundary between one language and another. A Russian emigre who began writing in English after his forties, Nabokov was a trilingual author, equally competent in Russian, English, and French. A gifted and tireless translator, he bridged the gap between languages nimbly and joyously.Here, collected for the first time in one volume as Nabokov always wished, are many of his English translations of Russian verse, presented next to the Russian originals, as well as three never-before-published poems written in English by Nabokov himself. Here, also, are some of his notes on the dangers and thrills of translation. With an introduction by Brian Boyd, author of the prize-winning biography of Nabokov, "Verses and Versions" is a momentous and authoritative contribution to Nabokov's published works.

* Vladimir Nabokov (1899-1977), a Russian born poet, novelist, literary critic, translator, and essayist, was awarded the National Medal for Literature for his life's work in 1973. He taught literature at Wellesley, Stanford, Cornell, and Harvard. He is the author of many works, including LOLITA, PALE FIRE, ADA, and SPEAK, MEMORY.