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Mark Sanderson at large in a world of books |
Dmitri Nabokov's decision to publish the fragments of his father Vladimir's last novel - a collection of 50 index cards titled The Original of Laura - even though he was supposed to burn them, will surely prove to be a lucrative exercise in barrel-scraping.
He told Der Spiegel, the German magazine: 'I'm a loyal son and thought long and seriously about it. Then my father appeared before me and said with an ironic grin: "You're stuck in a right old mess. Just go ahead and publish." ' Which was most considerate and fatherly of him.
Dmitri might hope to emulate the success of another literary son, Mark Vonnegut, offspring of Kurt, who has put together a collection of his late father's unpublished writings and doodles titled Armageddon in Retrospect.
It is currently high in the hardback bestseller lists in America and comes out here later this month. It is not clear if Mark had any posthumous discussions with Pa prior to publication though.