Have one to sell? Sell yours here
 
 
The Real Life of Sebastian Knight
 
 
Share your own customer images
Search inside another edition of this book

The Real Life of Sebastian Knight (Paperback)

by Vladimir Nabokov (Author) "SEBASTIAN KNIGHT was born on the thirty-first of December, 1899, in the former capital of my country ..." (more)
3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)

Available from these sellers.


9 used from £9.33
Other Editions: RRP: Our Price: Other Offers:
Hardcover (First Edition First Printing) 6 used & new from £15.00
Paperback (New Ed) £10.99 £7.14 6 used & new from £4.38

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

Invitation to a Beheading (Penguin Modern Classics)

Invitation to a Beheading (Penguin Modern Classics)

by Vladimir Nabokov
4.3 out of 5 stars (11)  £7.78
Bend Sinister (Penguin Modern Classics)

Bend Sinister (Penguin Modern Classics)

by Vladimir Nabokov
3.5 out of 5 stars (4)  £7.76
Speak, Memory: An Autobiography Revisited (Penguin Modern Classics)

Speak, Memory: An Autobiography Revisited (Penguin Modern Classics)

by Vladimir Nabokov
4.5 out of 5 stars (2)  £7.46
Despair (Penguin Modern Classics)

Despair (Penguin Modern Classics)

by Vladimir Nabokov
3.5 out of 5 stars (4)  £7.71
Laughter in the Dark (Penguin Modern Classics)

Laughter in the Dark (Penguin Modern Classics)

by Vladimir Nabokov
4.6 out of 5 stars (5)  £7.49
› Explore similar items

Product details

  • Paperback: 224 pages
  • Publisher: Vintage Books; 1st Vintage International Ed edition (1 Jan 1995)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0679727264
  • ISBN-13: 978-0679727262
  • Product Dimensions: 19.8 x 13.2 x 1.5 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 2,739,162 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    •  Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

Product Description

Synopsis

The protagonist relates the life of his half-brother, the novelist Sebastian Knight, in an effort to reveal his true character.
Inside This Book (Learn More)
Browse and search another edition of this book.
First Sentence
SEBASTIAN KNIGHT was born on the thirty-first of December, 1899, in the former capital of my country. Read the first page
Explore More
Concordance
Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
Search inside this book:

Suggested Tags from Similar Products

 (What's this?)
Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
 
vladimir nabokov - american writings
vladimir nabokov
russia
nabokov
20th century american fiction

Your tags: Add your first tag
 
See most popular tags

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

The Real Life of Sebastian Knight
62% buy the item featured on this page:
The Real Life of Sebastian Knight 3.5 out of 5 stars (2)
Pnin (Penguin Modern Classics)
12% buy
Pnin (Penguin Modern Classics) 4.2 out of 5 stars (9)
£5.38
Pale Fire (Penguin Modern Classics)
11% buy
Pale Fire (Penguin Modern Classics) 4.8 out of 5 stars (5)
£5.73
Laughter in the Dark (Penguin Modern Classics)
8% buy
Laughter in the Dark (Penguin Modern Classics) 4.6 out of 5 stars (5)
£7.49
Explore similar items
 

Customer Reviews

2 Reviews
5 star:    (0)
4 star:
 (1)
3 star:
 (1)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
3.5 out of 5 stars (2 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
6 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars Missing brother, 22 Jan 2002
By A Customer
This review is from: The Real Life of Sebastian Knight (Penguin Modern Classics) (Paperback)
This is Nabokov's first novel in English and there is much to admire here: the shimmering descriptions; the tragi-comic misunderstandings; the rueful meditations on lost property (in this case a brother). The story concerns itself with V, who attempts to shade in the life of his recently deceased brother, the novelist Sebastian Knight. Knight, the writer, is perhaps the weakest element in the book - the quoted extracts and discussed work are a tad unconvincing: something N rectified in Pale Fire with the creation of John Shade. This is not a major Nabokov admittedly, but it is interesting for its autobiographical infarction: in Speak, Memory, N would talk movingly of his dead brother for a mere 2 pages - read them, I urge you - having exorcised much of his loss in The Real Life of Sebastian Knight. The writing is beautiful, though its archness may put some readers off - the comedy and characteristion should put them back on track again though. Worth reading after you've finished Lolita and Pale Fire and are looking where to go next. Two and a half stars.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews  
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


 
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars A taste of what was to come, 23 Oct 2009
By A. J. Morson (UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: The Real Life of Sebastian Knight (Penguin Modern Classics) (Paperback)
While it falls short compared to later English works such as Lolita and Pale Fire, The Real Life of Sebastian Knight is an underrated little gem in Nabokov's oeuvre.

There's an enigmatic narrator and plenty of postmodern play. But that's par for the course. What makes TRLOSB special is the sense of Nabokov finding his feet in his adopted literary language. That's not to say he ever succumbs to a clumsy sentence or a misplaced word - everything is as carefully written as one would expect from the Great One. What there is, though, is a certain vulnerability of tone not present in any of his other novels (including the apprentice work Mary). This is reflected in the narrator V, who does not exhibit the expressive arrogance of a Humbert or a Kinbote (or a Hermann, or a Van Veen...)

So there's a fascinating feeling of transition in TRLOSK, being as it is the bridge between the great Russian novels Despair and The Gift and the great English novels that would make Nabokov famous.

Written by any other author, TRLOSK would be considered a masterpiece - it's predictably pretty, intensely readable and highly thought-provoking. But Nabokov's best was so good, his merely 'very good' books risk being neglected.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews  
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Only search this product's reviews


Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
   
Related forums

Listmania!

Create a Listmania! list

Look for similar items by category

Look for similar items by subject














i.e., each product must be in subject 1 AND subject 2 AND ...

Feedback


Your Recent History

 (What's this?)

After viewing product detail pages or search results, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in.