EDNOTE. Dieter Zimmer is the editor of the
elegantly annotated Rowohlt edition of Nabokov's collected works. His
article (with Sabine Hartmann) "The Amazing Music of Truth: Nabokov's Sources
for Godunov's Central Asian Travels in THE GIFT" appears in the current
issue of NABOKOV STUDIES (vol. 7).
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Tuesday, July 29, 2003 1:33 AM
Subject: Re: Fw: Nabokov's Worst Novel?
The contributors to the Worst Novel thread do not
seem to be aware that Nabokov himself, who certainly did not consider all his
novels of equal merit (with changing favorites), at least twice designated
"Kamera obskura / Laughter in the Dark" as his "weakest novel", in his
interviews with Gerald Clarke ("Esquire", July 1975) and George A. Feifer
("Daily Telegraph Sunday Magazine", 15-Nov-1976 and "Saturday Review",
27-Nov-1976).
If somebody really counts "Bend Sinister" among
Nabokov weakest books, I believe he still has much to discover. And are
those who think little of "Glory" aware how close it is in tone and subject
matter to "Speak, Memory"?
Dieter Zimmer
July 29, 2003 -- 10:30am