Vladimir Nabokov: v. 1: The Russian Years Brian Boyd
Drawing on diaries, letters and manuscripts, on archival research in the Soviet Union, Europe and North America, and on interviews with Nabokov's family, friends, collegues, students - on everyone from an ex-fiancee to babysitters and concierges - the author captures the colour of Nabokov's life and world: opulent pre-revolutionary Petersburg, a Russian poet's Cambridge, impoverished emigre Berlin and France. The book includes a critical overview of Nabokov's thought and art.