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Delicate Markers is the first book-length study of Vladimir Nabokov's novel Invitation to a Beheading (1935-36), a masterpiece that has received a great deal of scholarly attention, second only to Lolita , among Nabokov's works. Contrary to the prevailing critical practice of interpreting the novel along specific lines, such as political or metaphysical, Shapiro considers its diverse subtexts, the implicit meanings, thereby achieving more complex and multifaceted perspectives. Even though centering on one work from Nabokov's Russian canon, Shapiro demonstrates the complexity of interartistic and cross-cultural ties in the writer's entire oeuvre, which became especially apparent in his "American years."
Report
"Gavriel Shapiro's book provides a valuable guide to unlocking many of the riddles and mysteries in Nabokov's 'Invitation to a Beheading'. The results of Professor Shapiro's exhaustive research into the literary and cultural sources for Nabokov's text will prove indispensable for the general and specialist reader alike." (Julian W. Connolly, Professor, University of Virginia, Charlottesville)
"Nabokov's early aspiration to be a painter is reflected in the wealth of artistic allusion in his writing. Gavriel Shapiro, one of the very few Nabokov scholars with equal erudition in literature and the visual arts, provides new insights into Nabokov's most dazzling Russian novel, 'Invitation to a Beheading', and, in doing so, suggests an innovative approach to the oeuvre." (D. Barton Johnson, Professor Emeritus, University of California at Santa Barbara)
