List of Best Short Stories of Vladimir Nabokov

Vladimir Nabokov’s grammar, keyhole observations, and treasure mine of frequently brief and even shorter stories filled with so much knowledge and mystery that I can never fully understand them are what I find so fascinating. Here is just a small sample of all his literary marvels.

These stories enthrall with their complexities and hidden depths when combined with their typically lovely language. Every time, Vladimir Nabokov seems to be inviting his readers on a treasure hunt, and his universe is intriguing and lovely enough to be marveled at. In his final paragraph, Nabokov lists his six personal favorites from his collection of stories, which is noticeably composed entirely of works by men, and “parenthesize[s] briefly the passage — or one of the passages — in which genuine afflation appears to be present, no matter how trivial the inspired detail may look to a dull critical”

Well, I’ll be listing the Best Short Stories of Vladimir Nabokov. Note that this is not a sponsored post, all books listed below are highly recommended by psychology experts.

Contents

Best Short Stories of Vladimir Nabokov

The following are the Best Short Stories of Vladimir Nabokov you should be considering:

First Love
Spring in Fialta
Delmore Schwartz’s “In Dreams Begin Responsibilities” (“. . . and
The Assistant Producer
A Nursery Tale
John Updike’s “The Happiest I’ve Been”
The Thunderstorm

First Love

The reader is taken inside the delicate mind of a ten-year-old kid as he has his first intense love affair with a French girl his age on a beach in this nine-page short narrative. Even though he only occasionally runs across her by chance, he is so consumed with childish affection that only Nabokov could transport you inside this boy’s head and heart. Every visual representation of their environment captures the child’s experience in some way, giving the reader a sense of how a child may feel in these carefree moments.

Spring in Fialta

During his exile in Berlin in 1936, Nabokov composed this story in Russian. Set The narrative depicts the efforts of two married people to retain a lost love in the imaginary Mediterranean town of Fialta in a very allegorical and poetic manner. Nabokov explored many of the literary issues and narrative devices that will define his later works in this story, including the relationship to a Double, recalling events from memory, the feeling of love, and the question of reality, among others.

Delmore Schwartz’s “In Dreams Begin Responsibilities” (“. . . and

Although there are many other holy vibrations in this tale that so marvelously fuses an old movie with a personal past, the sentence in question receives special recognition for its strength and flawless rhythm.)

A lovely contralto voice, the singing spirit of a woman, marched in front of a well-trained battalion during the Russian Revolution. becoming the future bride of General Golubkov (a triple agent), who the Soviets had predicted would preside over renowned spies, and who in fact gives the Germans false intelligence.

The story is led by Nabakov, who remarks in a tongue-in-cheek manner, “I want all your attention now, for it would be a pity to miss the subtleties of the situation” (p. 95). All manner of intrigue ensues. The philosopher Nabokov adds, “The only things that actually exist are one’s death and one’s conscience. The wonderful thing about humans is that while sometimes doing the right thing may slip one’s mind, doing the wrong thing is always obvious. Enter the story with this in mind to learn who is still innocent and how, to tell the truth.

A Nursery Tale

A guy signs a contract with the Devil, who is posing as an elderly woman, in this appropriately sensual tale, and is given permission to have as many women as he wants as long as the total is odd. The fates work together to trick our protagonist and cause him to breach the pact, much like in a traditional Greek tragedy. Nabokov creates a supernatural universe that includes, among other things, themes of selling one’s soul and pedophilia similar to what we would see in Lolita.

John Updike’s “The Happiest I’ve Been”

The dialogue itself, the quick nods, the leisurely nods, and the weaving of various memories were more essential than the topic at hand. It resembled one of those Panama baskets that had been woven underwater around a pointless stone. I enjoy so many of Updike’s stories that picking just one for demonstration and deciding on its most creative passage were both challenging.

The Thunderstorm

The wind is portrayed by Nabokov as practically an animated entity that causes all kinds of strange things to happen. “The thunder-god, a white-haired giant with a furious beard blown over his shoulder by the wind, dressed in the flying folds of a dazzling raiment, stood, leaning backward, in his fiery chariot, restraining with tense arms his tremendous, jet-black steeds, their manes a violet blaze” (p.99). The story continues with fantastical happenings and a beautiful manner of echoing details that keep the character and the reader on edge until the almost mystical conclusion.

Some other Best Short Stories of Vladimir Nabokov

Below are some other Best Short Stories of Vladimir Nabokov

Ultima Thule

J. D. Salinger’s “A Perfect Day for Bananafish”

Details of a Sunset

Best Short Stories of Vladimir Nabokov FAQs

Where should I start with Nabokov?

The Eye. Vladimir Nabokov.
Vladimir Nabokov.
Invitation to a Beheading. Vladimir Nabokov.
Bend Sinister. Vladimir Nabokov.
Speak, Memory: An Autobiography Revisited.
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Pale Fire.
The Luzhin Defense.

Who is the greatest short story?

The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe.
The Lottery by Shirley Jackson.
The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman.
Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin.
The Dead by James Joyce.
The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka.
Hills Like White Elephants by Ernest Hemingway.

Did Nabokov write short stories?

There were 65 stories in the book when it was first published. Thirteen stories made up Nabokov’s first collection of short stories, Nabokov’s Dozen, which served as the model for the four collections he published after that during his lifetime.

Did Nabokov love his wife?

Vladimir Nabokov and Véra were wed for 52 years—apparently, a record among literary couples—and their intimacy was almost hermetic. He yearned for her terribly while they weren’t together.

In what order should I read Nabokov?

Mary (1926)
The Luzhin Defense (1929)
The Eye (1930)
Glory (1931)
Laughter in the Dark (1932)
Despair (1934)
Invitation to a Beheading (1938)
The Gift (1938)

What is a good reader Nabokov?

Of course, as you probably already figured, a good reader also has imagination, memory, a vocabulary, and some artistic sense—a sense that, whenever I get the chance, I want to foster in both myself and others.

Who did Nabokov admire?

He held a deep admiration for Dickens, Stevenson, and Joyce, and The Trial’s mood and tone are echoed in Invitation to a Beheading. A more lighthearted example is Lewis Carroll; Nabokov wrote what is regarded as the best Russian translation of Alice in Wonderland.

Was Nabokov a genius?

The writer Vladimir Nabokov was a genius.

What style is Nabokov?

Genres Novel novella short story drama poetry translation autobiography non-fiction

Literary movement Modernism postmodernism

Years active from 1916

Employers Wellesley College Cornell University

Why is Nabokov so popular?

Vladimir Nabokov, a Russian author who writes in three languages, has a long history of producing novels, poems, essays, and critical works. He rose to fame for writing literary books with intricate plots, witty wordplay, risky analogies, and brilliantly written sentences.

That is all for this article, where we’ve stated and discussed the Best Short Stories of Vladimir Nabokov. I hope it was helpful. if so, kindly share it with others. Thanks for reading; see you around!