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Stacy Schiff. Vera: Mrs. Vladimir Nabokov. New York. Random House. 2000 (c1999). xiv + 456 pages + 16 plates. $14.95. ISBN 0-375-75534-9
STACY SCHIFF'S SENSITIVE, richly documented biography celebrates the lifelong love of two extraordinary people: Vera, who tirelessly devoted herself to the service of her "incomparable genius" of a husband; and Vladimir Nabokov, her late husband, who adored her and constantly alluded to her throughout his work. Their lives throw light also on one of the significant problems of our time, that of the millions of refugees who fled from communist Russia, from Nazi Germany, and from France during the German occupation. Many of them were able to reach the United States and become citizens. Vera evokes emotionally their nomadic existence and their efforts to establish a permanent address.
The Nabokovs, after the sensational success of Lolita (1955), finally attained financial and social security. This success was promoted by Vera herself. She typed and often edited, corrected, and even translated her husband's writings and also carried on negotiations with publishers. She took care as well of all the practical details of their daily life, of which Nabokov himself was completely incapable. Her activity became even more tireless in the wake of Lolita, when Vladimir was constantly besieged by the media. She frequently complains about the "servitudes of fame," and, at the end of their lives, she arranges for them to withdraw to Montreux, a quiet Swiss lakeside village where they...