Vladimir Nabokov

NABOKV-L post 0002511, Mon, 27 Oct 1997 08:52:22 -0800

Subject
Quotation from "Sounds" (Zvuki) (fwd)
Date
Body
EDITOR's NOTE. If anyone out there has a copy of the original Russian text
of "Zvuki" (SOunds), perhaps they could provide MR. Arkanov with the two
lines he is asking about.
-----------------------------------


I attempted the translation of the article on Vera Nabokov published almost a
year ago in the New Yorker magazine. ("Mr. & Mrs. Genius" by Stacey Schiff). I
don't know if it can be of any interest to anyone on the list (there is also a
possibility that someone has already translated it long before me) - but I
will be happy to share my Russian version of the article with anyone whom it
might interest. I started this work with no other goal in mind than to make
it available to a couple of my friends who don't read English, but admire
Nabokov.
I would be grateful if you could help me with one problem:

In the text the author refers to the short story "Sounds", written by Nabokov
in September 1923. According to Brian Boyd's biography the story has never
been published. Schiff writes - "in the story Nabokov introduces a radiant
delicate thin-wristed woman with pale dusty-looking eyes and hair that melts
in the sunlight". I would rather avoid translating the passage back into
Russian if it is possible at all to peep into the original. Is it possible
that the story has been included in the recent publication of Nabokov's prose
that I am not aware of? If not is there a way to obtain it?

Thank you for you help.

Vasiliy Arkanov (vasechka@msn.com)