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Vladimir Nabokov

Books

Handwritten Manuscript Pages From Classic Novels

By Emily Temple on

These days, almost all works of literature are written on computers — from their first inklings, saved in a document called “notes,” to their final, emailed-out drafts — and even, increasingly, read on them. In such a climate, we are even more fascinated by the handwritten drafts and original manuscripts of classic literature, from which much can be inferred via handwriting, paper choice, and strength of pen marks. But mostly, they’re nice to look at, so with more than a little help from awesome Tumblr Fuck Yeah, Manuscripts!, we’ve collected a few of our favorite… Read More

Books

Your Favorite Authors’ Favorite Musicians

By Tom Hawking on

Here at Flavorwire of late, we’ve been looking at what some of our favorite creative types have appreciated in the work of their peers — our favorite actors’ favorite actors, etc. We do like a bit of genre cross-pollination, though, so we thought we’d extend the remit of the idea across genre lines, starting with some of our favorite authors discussing the work of the musicians who inspire, excite, or just generally impress… Read More

Books

33 Wonderful Fan-Designed Covers for Famous Novels

By Emily Temple on

Here at Flavorwire, we’re suckers for a great book cover — even if that book cover never actually made it into production. After all, it’s not too much of a stretch to imagine that sometimes the best book covers come from those designing without the constraints of publicity departments or authorial preferences. To that end, after the jump you will find a collection of unofficial book covers for famous works — created by students, career designers, or mysterious people on the Internet — that we totally love. Publishing houses, take note: we would buy these if ever we saw them in the pulpy flesh. Did we miss your favorite (or your own)? Link us to more literary design goodness in the comments. … Read More

Books

10 Phenomenally Tricky Books Everyone Should Read

By Emily Temple on

This morning, we read Laura Miller’s piece on “sneaky author tricks” over at Salon, in which she muses on the dangers of metafictional, tricks-y writing — one of her points being that if an author’s going to do it, he’d better do it well. Like Miller, we are rather fond of authorial tricks, and considering that today is April Fools’ day, we thought we’d collect a few of the best here. Click through to see a few of our favorite tricky books. … Read More

Books

10 (More) Wonderful Short Stories to Read for Free Online

By Emily Temple on

Around this time last year, we gave you a list of a few of our all-time favorite short stories that were available to read online for free. By now, we expect that you’ve read them all, so we thought it was high time to collect a few more. After the jump, ten more short stories that you can read for free — on your phone on the train, while pretending to work, printed out with a cup of tea on the couch — all of them guaranteed to be great (and a few that were suggested by readers on our first go-around). But of course, the Internet abounds with these, so if you’ve a generous spirit, you could even add to our list in the comments. Happy reading. … Read More

Books

Former Students’ Recollections of Classes Taught by Famous Authors

By Emily Temple on

This week, we read a wonderful essay at The New York Review of Books from a former student of Vladimir Nabokov, a juicy read for anyone who wishes that they could have taken one of the genius writer’s classes (i.e., everyone). Inspired, we hunted around for more first-person recollections of classes taken with famous writers — whether they were famous at the time or only later on. Read through a few of the ones we found after the jump, and add your own memories (if you’re lucky enough to have them) in the comments. … Read More

Books

10 New Must-Reads for March

By Emily Temple on

If it’s anything, March is a month of transition — that liminal space between February’s harsh cold shoulder and April’s underhanded promise of spring. So why not weather the awkward weeks reading? Luckily, this March boasts a spectacular spate of new books, from essential reissues of forgotten classics to sparkling debut novels to new forms from modern masters. Click through for ten of our must-reads for the month… Read More

Books

25 Fascinating Photos of Famous Writers at Home

By Emily Temple on

This week, we caught a glimpse of author Tao Lin’s Murray Hill apartment in this cheeky review over at Vice. Though somewhat alarmed at the squalor of Lin’s digs (seriously, can you blame us?), we found ourselves inspired to hunt down a few more shots of notable authors hanging out at home. After the jump, stop by and visit with everyone from Zora Neale Hurston to Paul Auster. Whose apartment would you most like to move into? Let us know in the comments. … Read More

Books

Diagnosing Your Romantic Issues Based on Your Favorite Literary Couple

By Emily Temple on

Happy Valentine’s Day, literary lovers! Or literary loners, as the case may very well be. If you’ve been going through a rough patch this year, maybe your reading habits are to blame — or maybe they’re just clues to the source of your strife. After all, we can’t help but be influenced by our favorite love stories. After the jump, you’ll find our cheeky analysis of your romantic issues based on your favorite literary couple — whether you’re modeling yourself after them or just can’t get enough of their particular brand of crazy. See if you can find your favorite literary lovebirds below, and let us know if we’ve got you pegged in the comments. … Read More

New York

Martin Amis on Reading, Writing, and What It’s Like Inside Nabokov’s House

By Emily Temple on

Last night, Martin Amis — the recent Brooklyn transplant, notorious firebrand, and king of “the new unpleasantness” — came to the Brooklyn Academy of Music for the season’s first installment of the great reading and conversation program Eat, Drink and Be Literary. The controversial Amis showed up in a surprisingly cheery tie, and, while being interviewed by New Yorker fiction editor Deborah Treisman, spoke eloquently about his work and the state of fiction, constantly evoking as many of the gods of literature as he could, from Dickens to Nabokov to Sebald. After the jump, we’ve reproduced a few of Amis’ best literary invocations and ideas about the state of writing and reading from the event. Click through to hear a little wisdom from a modern master. … Read More