Sergei Soloviev: Kim was also a
spy-boy in the famous novel by Kipling.
L. Hochard: VN might also be
alluding to Joséphine de Beauharnais, Napoléon Bonaparte's first
wife[...]VN gave her name to Kim,
providing him with a very apt ancestry.
JM: What was VN's opinion about
R.Kipling? As a girl-scout we followed a perception/memory game based
on Kim's talents. A load of unconnected items was shown and, after a
short period, the things were taken away. Won who could write down the
most complete listing of the vanished objects. A very useful exercise. But
I think that Napoleon's unfaithful and sterile empress as Kim's ancestor
fits nicely in the overall picture in ADA...