Subject
Boyd on "Nabokov & the History of the Book as Object"
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Date
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EDITOR's NOTE. Below Brian Brian replies to Juan Martinez's query about
topics for research on the theme of Nabokov's books as objects, i.e.,
books as books. This is a rich and unexploited area. Give it some
thought.
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: RE: [Fwd: Nabokov & the History of the Book]
Date: Fri, 22 Feb 2002 09:41:48 +1300
From: "Brian Boyd (FOA ENG)" <b.boyd@auckland.ac.nz>
To: "'D. Barton Johnson '" <chtodel@gte.net>
Dear List, dear Juan,
This could be the topic for a fascinating PhD for a bi- or multilingual
scholar.
What will be feasible depends very much on your library resources.
The early work would allow you to map the changing fortunes of the
emigration: luxurious early periodicals (like Zhar-Ptitsa), at a time
when
the Soviet market was still open to emigre publishing; the mostly plain
emigre first editions (Slovo and Petropolis), except for the
comparatively
opulent (especially for 1930!) Zashchita Luzhina, and the filmstock
Kamera
obskura that undermines VN's claims that he had not thought of it as a
movie prospect. Then in late 20s and 30s: the early German-language and
English-language editions: the attempt by Ullstein and John Long to
reach a wider market than VN's natural one; the emigre journals as
"first editions."
1940s: the early American fiction, and VN's uncertain marketability; the
New Yorker era, and the relation between magazine and book publication
for
CE/SM, Lolita and Pnin. 1950s: Doubleday, and tension between Epstein's
enthusiasm and bosses' reserve; the shift to Putnam and greater VN
control.
1960s-1970s: the Phaedra interlude, and near loss of control; the
McGraw-Hill era, and resumption of firm control and first attempt at a
collected Nabokov; the relative lack of control over some of the
paperback
houses; the partial shift from New Yorker to Playboy. 1980s: the edited
books, especially the Lectures series (and Bruccoli-Clark); the 1980s
slump in availability, the corrected Vintage editions and the
Vintage-Penguin agreements to assure availability.
1980s-1990s: the canonization, as it were, in the West, with Rowohlt,
Pleiade and Library of America editions; the anarchy and piracy in
Russia.
If you want something smaller than several PhDs, you could look at
blurbs
and endorsements: in the 1930s English-language would-be popular
editions;
in the 1940s arty editions; VN's resistance to endorsements and blurbs
thereafter, and playing with the form in ADA (first English, and Penguin
editions).
Another well-defined and interesting topic: Lolita's struggle for
acceptability and its "struggles" with success: Olympia, and VN's fears
for loss of US copyright; L'Affaire Lolita; Anchor Review; the contest
for the American rights, Putnam's advertising campaign, VN's insistence
on discreet design; Weidenfeld & Nicolson's campaign of respectability,
with the new censorship bill in the balance, in its addenda; Lolita
lollipop, etc.
Good luck!
Brian Boyd
-----Original Message-----
From: D. Barton Johnson
To: NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU
Sent: 2/21/2002 12:11 PM
Subject: [Fwd: Nabokov & the History of the Book]
EDITOR's NOTE. AS for book covers, Paul Maliszewski did a very nice,
very well-illustrated article. Punch his name into the NABOKV-L archive
search file for citation.
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Nabokov & the History of the Book
Date: Wed, 20 Feb 2002 18:01:18 -0500
From: "Juan Martinez" <jmm80625@mail.ucf.edu>
Hi!
I'm preparing a paper for my History of the Book course. The topic is
fairly open. I want to do something related to Nabokov, but have been
trying to narrow it down. I was thinking that it could be
- A short survey of book formats as seen through Nabokov's works: from
the emigre journals to the New Directions paperback to the Olympia
Travellers to the various paperbacks (using the McSweeney's essay as a
reference) to the McGraw-Hill reissues of Nabokov's Russian works.
or:
- Just looking a the McGraw-Hill hardbacks and paperbacks: what they
looked like and why, and how well they sold. I understand that they were
a bit of an experiment for the company as they were, and are, mostly
into textbooks.
or:
- Anything anyone might want to suggest that might be better, or better
focused at least. The course is fairly open. I want to stick mostly to
the book as an object.
I'm wondering what sources there are available for looking at Nabokov
editions as objects: cover-art choices, paper stocks, typography, sales
and distribution. I'll be looking through at the letters again soon.
Thanks to anyone who might want to jump in with suggestions.
Cheers,
Juan
-- http://www.fulmerford.com
topics for research on the theme of Nabokov's books as objects, i.e.,
books as books. This is a rich and unexploited area. Give it some
thought.
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: RE: [Fwd: Nabokov & the History of the Book]
Date: Fri, 22 Feb 2002 09:41:48 +1300
From: "Brian Boyd (FOA ENG)" <b.boyd@auckland.ac.nz>
To: "'D. Barton Johnson '" <chtodel@gte.net>
Dear List, dear Juan,
This could be the topic for a fascinating PhD for a bi- or multilingual
scholar.
What will be feasible depends very much on your library resources.
The early work would allow you to map the changing fortunes of the
emigration: luxurious early periodicals (like Zhar-Ptitsa), at a time
when
the Soviet market was still open to emigre publishing; the mostly plain
emigre first editions (Slovo and Petropolis), except for the
comparatively
opulent (especially for 1930!) Zashchita Luzhina, and the filmstock
Kamera
obskura that undermines VN's claims that he had not thought of it as a
movie prospect. Then in late 20s and 30s: the early German-language and
English-language editions: the attempt by Ullstein and John Long to
reach a wider market than VN's natural one; the emigre journals as
"first editions."
1940s: the early American fiction, and VN's uncertain marketability; the
New Yorker era, and the relation between magazine and book publication
for
CE/SM, Lolita and Pnin. 1950s: Doubleday, and tension between Epstein's
enthusiasm and bosses' reserve; the shift to Putnam and greater VN
control.
1960s-1970s: the Phaedra interlude, and near loss of control; the
McGraw-Hill era, and resumption of firm control and first attempt at a
collected Nabokov; the relative lack of control over some of the
paperback
houses; the partial shift from New Yorker to Playboy. 1980s: the edited
books, especially the Lectures series (and Bruccoli-Clark); the 1980s
slump in availability, the corrected Vintage editions and the
Vintage-Penguin agreements to assure availability.
1980s-1990s: the canonization, as it were, in the West, with Rowohlt,
Pleiade and Library of America editions; the anarchy and piracy in
Russia.
If you want something smaller than several PhDs, you could look at
blurbs
and endorsements: in the 1930s English-language would-be popular
editions;
in the 1940s arty editions; VN's resistance to endorsements and blurbs
thereafter, and playing with the form in ADA (first English, and Penguin
editions).
Another well-defined and interesting topic: Lolita's struggle for
acceptability and its "struggles" with success: Olympia, and VN's fears
for loss of US copyright; L'Affaire Lolita; Anchor Review; the contest
for the American rights, Putnam's advertising campaign, VN's insistence
on discreet design; Weidenfeld & Nicolson's campaign of respectability,
with the new censorship bill in the balance, in its addenda; Lolita
lollipop, etc.
Good luck!
Brian Boyd
-----Original Message-----
From: D. Barton Johnson
To: NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU
Sent: 2/21/2002 12:11 PM
Subject: [Fwd: Nabokov & the History of the Book]
EDITOR's NOTE. AS for book covers, Paul Maliszewski did a very nice,
very well-illustrated article. Punch his name into the NABOKV-L archive
search file for citation.
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Nabokov & the History of the Book
Date: Wed, 20 Feb 2002 18:01:18 -0500
From: "Juan Martinez" <jmm80625@mail.ucf.edu>
Hi!
I'm preparing a paper for my History of the Book course. The topic is
fairly open. I want to do something related to Nabokov, but have been
trying to narrow it down. I was thinking that it could be
- A short survey of book formats as seen through Nabokov's works: from
the emigre journals to the New Directions paperback to the Olympia
Travellers to the various paperbacks (using the McSweeney's essay as a
reference) to the McGraw-Hill reissues of Nabokov's Russian works.
or:
- Just looking a the McGraw-Hill hardbacks and paperbacks: what they
looked like and why, and how well they sold. I understand that they were
a bit of an experiment for the company as they were, and are, mostly
into textbooks.
or:
- Anything anyone might want to suggest that might be better, or better
focused at least. The course is fairly open. I want to stick mostly to
the book as an object.
I'm wondering what sources there are available for looking at Nabokov
editions as objects: cover-art choices, paper stocks, typography, sales
and distribution. I'll be looking through at the letters again soon.
Thanks to anyone who might want to jump in with suggestions.
Cheers,
Juan
-- http://www.fulmerford.com