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646

Vladimir Nabokov

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles / Autographs Start Price:NA Estimated At:2,000.00 - 2,500.00 USD
Vladimir Nabokov

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Auction Date:2010 Jul 14 @ 22:00 (UTC-5 : EST/CDT)
Location:5 Rt 101A Suite 5, Amherst, New Hampshire, 03031, United States
ALS - Autograph Letter Signed
ANS - Autograph Note Signed
AQS - Autograph Quotation Signed
AMQS - Autograph Musical Quotation Signed
DS - Document Signed
FDC - First Day Cover
Inscribed - “Personalized”
ISP - Inscribed Signed Photograph
LS - Letter Signed
SP - Signed Photograph
TLS - Typed Letter Signed
Much-esteemed Russian-born American writer (1899–1977), best known for the controversial 1955 classic Lolita, widely hailed as one of the greatest novels of the 20th century. ALS in French, signed “V. Nabakoff,” on a 5.75 x 4 postal card, no date, but postmarked August 5, 1936. Letter to French poet Melot du Dy. In full: “Many thanks for your ‘Signs of Life’ (a title full of poetic spirit!) and the kind words that you have sent. You are completely right to talk about ‘tasting plumpness over breadth.’ Without this taste for life that you have (the taste of ‘green potatoes’) it would be impossible for you to write such beautiful verses. I particularly liked ‘the old, sound mirror,’ then the magnificent ‘I think of the drawers of the poets’ and the ‘young, pious man.’ Thank you again for this charming gift. I have the full intention of coming to Belgium this autumn—and this will be a great pleasure, you can be assured. My best wishes to your wife.” Nabakov has addressed the reverse of the postcard and signed in the return address area, “Nabakoff, Nestorstr. 22.” Some scattered creasing (primarily to edges), a uniform shade of mild toning, and light handling wear, otherwise fine condition.

Letters by Nabakov from this early part of his life are extremely rare, and this one, which gives an insight into his developing linguistic style, is particularly desirable. It was during this time in Berlin—between 1935 and 1937, to be precise—that Nabokov worked on The Gift, his final Russian novel and one of a steady stream of work produced in the Russian language during that period. The majority of that work, however, earned him little money and was largely unknown outside of the Russian-speaking population of Berlin and Paris. The Gift, however, was different. Published in serial form under his pen name, Vladimir Sirin, its plot of a Russian writer living in Berlin mirrored the author’s own existence.

In the offered letter, Nabakov’s words give insight into his developing linguistic style. He seems quite inspired by du Dy’s “taste for life,” without which “it would be impossible...to write such beautiful verses.” Such optimistic thoughts, however, do not reflect the turmoil in Nazi Germany at the time—or in his own life. The same year that this letter of thanks for the recipient’s “kind words” was sent, the author’s Jewish-Russian wife, Vera Evseyevna Slonim, lost her job because of an increasingly anti-Semitic environment. Nabokov began seeking a job in the English-speaking world, and in 1937, disgusted with the Nazi regime, left Germany with his wife and their child for France.
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