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King, Queen, Knave Audiobook
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(3.02) - 1,616 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
This novel is the story of Dreyer, a wealthy and boisterous proprietor of a men’s clothing emporium. Ruddy, self-satisfied, and thoroughly masculine, he is perfectly repugnant to his exquisite but cold middle-class wife, Martha. Attracted to his money but repelled by his oblivious passion, she longs for their nephew instead, the thin, awkward, myopic Franz. Newly arrived in Berlin, Franz soon repays his uncle’s condescension in his aunt’s bed. One of the twentieth century’s master prose stylists, Vladimir Nabokov was born in St. Petersburg in 1899. He studied French and Russian literature at Trinity College, Cambridge, then lived in Berlin and Paris, where he launched a brilliant literary career. In 1940 he moved to the United States, and achieved renown as a novelist, poet, critic, and translator. He taught literature at Wellesley, Stanford, Cornell, and Harvard. In 1961 he moved to Montreux, Switzerland, where he died in 1977. “Nabokov writes prose the only way it should be written, that is, ecstatically.” — John Updike
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"Perhaps I gave this book five stars because it was my first Nabokov book and so I was blown away by his style. I was substitute teaching when I read this and had taken it to class to read while the kids worked on their projects. I remember literally blushing reading it, and thinking I shouldn't be reading this around a bunch of high schoolers. It is by no means a harlequin style book, there is no graphic descriptions of writhing bodies or so forth. However, Nabokov has a way of describing how people feel about one another that is so personal you have no choice but to blush."
— Mindy (5 out of 5 stars)
King, Queen, Knave Listener Reviews
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" Started out really good but took a turn about halfway through that didn't engage me. "
— Anna, 2/11/2014 -
" Maybe it's chauvinistic provincialism on my part, but I find Nabokov less interesting when his stories take place in foreign countries. I just didn't find this novel as enjoyable as his later American books. Maybe the humor doesn't travel well, but there were times when this book was a slog to get through. "
— Dave, 1/30/2014 -
" Got off to a fantastic start. Fizzled a bit toward the end though... "
— Erin, 1/27/2014 -
" Nabokov's shimmering but bottomlessly deep prose makes this book a gem on its own. It frames brilliantly the unavoidable dialectic of the aggressively conventional and normative (in Martha and, though her, the obedient Franz) against the whimsical, curious, and creative in Dreyer. Deeply disturbingly, it does this mainly through the eyes of the side I know I always root against. For that alone I feel as if it will hold a place in my mind forever whenever that opposition occurs to me. Characteristically of Nabokov, it's delightful, unsettling, and very rewarding to read. "
— Charles, 1/20/2014 -
" Unfortunately, his son's translations are all pretty awful. "
— Clare, 1/16/2014 -
" One of my all time favorite books, throughly entertaining! "
— Kristine, 12/29/2013 -
" Fun in the duration of reading, but already fading from memory - unmeaningful, unmemorable. "
— Af, 11/23/2013 -
" A quick read but a fun and somewhat typical Russian story of love, adultery, and mischief. A soap opera told with a better vocabulary than daytime TV. "
— Catherine, 11/16/2013 -
" This is by far my favorite Nabokov novel. Extremely descriptive and instantly captures you. "
— Jean, 11/9/2013 -
" Not what I expected, after reading Ada, Or Ardor, but still a very enjoyable read. "
— Seth, 10/19/2013 -
" Although I didn't enjoy this as much as other Nabokov books I've read, it's still a good read. Nabokov captures scenes and emotions so effortlessly, especially self-destructive obsession. He examines the (always) desperate human condition. Nihlistic. "
— maren, 10/16/2012 -
" the way Nabokov strings the metaphors made me reread most pages 2 or 3 times... enjoyed it a lot! "
— Vesselin, 7/29/2012 -
" un fel de roman politist, scris ca la carte, dupa reteta, si din cauza asta cam simplist in idea sa. sau poate atat de clar ca pare simplist. dar i-a oferit lui nabokov ocazia de a se delecta cu jocurile de cuvinte. savuros. citit intr-o noapte si cateva ore pe plaja. "
— Vcondratchi, 3/4/2012 -
" Nabokov is a genius. I've waited to long. "
— Jeremy, 12/15/2011 -
" it's a little hard to get through, but it is a beautifully written book. love nabokov! "
— Skye, 12/14/2011 -
" the ending was a little Anathem-esque! "
— Alex, 9/12/2011 -
" Another amazing Russian writer. This is one of his earlier stories. At times it is just brilliant, but you can definitely see him expanding as a writer here. "
— Bill, 5/5/2011 -
" This is probably my least favorite Nabokov novel. Still gets four stars though. "
— Christine, 4/13/2011 -
" I remember that I geberally enjoy Nabokov's writing, although I forget the particulars of this book. "
— Julia, 2/12/2011 -
" Oh Vladi, how I love your heavenly gift for prose. Guess you could say this is sort of like "if Nabokov did <em>Double Indemnity</em> in his own wonderful way." "
— Kit, 12/27/2010 -
" J'ai beaucoup apprécié le style, mais moins l'histoire, d'où le 2 étoiles (entre 2 et 3 dirais-je) "
— Agnesca, 11/7/2010 -
" It's probably not the best place to start with Nabokov, but it's a strange, funny book. Some plot issues aside, it's also further proof that Nabokov writes better at the sentence level than almost anyone else out there. "
— Justin, 8/11/2010 -
" One of my all time favorite books, throughly entertaining! "
— Kristine, 7/14/2010 -
" really great book about a rich german couple. The man's nephew comes to work for him and ends up having an awesome affair with his aunt. "
— Laura, 3/25/2010 -
" Not Nabokov's best.....despite an attempt to re-write in his later years, this one would have been better off staying in the archives. "
— Carolyn, 2/11/2010
About Vladimir Nabokov
Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov (1889–1977) was one of the most prolific writers and literary critics of the twentieth century. Born in St. Petersburg, Russia, he grew up in a trilingual household and later studied Slavic and romance languages at Trinity College, Cambridge, taking his honors degree in 1922. For the next eighteen years he lived in Berlin and Paris, writing prolifically in Russian under the pseudonym “Sirin” and supporting himself through translations, lessons in English and tennis, and by composing the first crossword puzzles in Russian. Having already fled Russia and Germany, Nabokov became a refugee once more in 1940 when he was forced to leave France for the United States. There he taught at Wellesley, Harvard, and Cornell. He died in Montreux, Switzerland.
About Christopher Lane
Christopher Lane is an award-winning actor, director, and narrator. He has been awarded the prestigious Audie Award for Best Narration several times and has won numerous AudioFile Earphones Awards.