Vladimir Nabokov

NABOKV-L post 0004867, Mon, 6 Mar 2000 17:10:56 -0800

Subject
Info re: Nabokov's Butterflies, ADA annotations,
and Boyd's PALE FIRE book. (fwd)
Date
Body
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In response to recent inquiries:

a) The publication date for the Boyd-Pyle NABOKOV's
BUTTERFLIES from Beacon is 1 April. The book includes a translation of an
unpublished draft section of what was to be part of THE GIFT. It is called
"Father's Butterflies." A selection from it will appear in the April
ATLANTIC MONTHLY with Boyd's introduction (one that differs from the
material in the book itself). Also a 4,000 word extract of "Father's
Butterflies" will appear in THE INDEPENDENT (UK) circa the 19th.

NB: The special discount deal aranged by Beacon and Galya Diment,
President of the International VN Society has now been oversubscribed
and NO FURTHER ORDERS can be taken.

b) Boyd is in the process of a very detailed series of annotations to ADA.
These are appearing in each issue of THE NABOKOVIAN, the twice-yearly
publication that comes with membership in the International VN Society. Re
membership (a nominal $15 per annum), contact Prof. Stephen PARKER
<sjparker@eagle.cc.ukans.edu>. It will take some years for the series to
be completed. Meanwhile there are Boyd's much less detailed annotations to
the ADA published in the Library of America VN set. The Russian
translation of ADA in the new SYMPOSIUM edition is also annotated.

c) For those with access to good libraries, Boyd's 1985 book NABOKOV's
ADA: The Place of Consciousness (Ardis) is a gold mine of information. It
is, however, not a series of annotations, but a full scale interpretation
of ADA something like Boyd's new PALE FIRE book.

d) There will be a Penguin reissue of ADA, probably in April,
containing a new "Afterword" by Boyd.

e) The NY Times Book Review of 5 March (2000) has a full page review of
Boyd's NABOKOV's PALE FIRE: THE MAGIC OF ARTISTIC DISCOVERY by Daniel
Zalewski, p. 32.