The Real Life of Sebastian Knight

"The Real Life of Sebastian Knight" — the first English-language novel by Vladimir Nabokov, completed in 1939 in Paris and published two years later in the USA. Its labyrinthine structure and quasi-detective plot predetermined the uniqueness of Nabokov's later prose — "Lolita," "Pale Fire," "Ada," and especially his last completed book "Look at the Harlequins!" The narrator, designated only by the initial V., reconstructs the life story of his half-brother, the deceased writer Sebastian Knight, using memories, oral stories, and excerpts from his books. Eluding V.'s persistent search, Knight's true life turns out to be closely connected with the mystery of his name, with his writings, with the laws of verbal art, and with Nabokov's metaphysics. This edition of the novel is accompanied by a preface, notes, and a concluding essay by the translator. The features of the translator's spelling, punctuation, and transliteration are preserved.