The Translator's Doubts

“An insightful and sophisticated examination of an important part of Nabokov’s legacy that sheds light on his entire oeuvre, written with elegance and wit.” ~Vladimir Alexandrov, B.E. Besinger Professor of Slavic Languages and Literatures, Yale University

“Nabokov was repelled and fascinated by what he called “the parrot’s screech” and Trubikhina does his ambivalence justice in this highly informed analysis of the metaphysical dilemma played out over three crucial Nabokovian translations: the Russianizing of Alice in Wonderland, the Englishing (or refusal to English) of Eugene Onegin and the “cinemizing” of Lolita. Her dexterous fusing of translation studies and film studies—via theories of analogy and adaptation—builds fruitfully on Nabokov’s ever-evolving perspective to offer new vistas to both fields." ~Esther Allen, Associate Professor, Baruch College, City University of New York

"The Translator’s Doubts is a striking departure from the traditional studies of Nabokov’s work as a translator. Not only does it mark a significant shift in critical perspective, but it also uses Nabokov as a means to a greater end — a meditation on “literary history and theory, philosophy and interpretation” (11) — with value far beyond the world of Nabokov criticism. . . .Each chapter, even taken separately, adds hugely to the corpus of Nabokov criticism, from philology and archival scholarship to new theoretical perspectives. [Trubikhina’s] sophisticated and insightful work will surely become one of the touchstone texts on Nabokov and translation for years to come." ~Bryan Karetnyk, University College London, Nabokov Online Journal, Vol. X–XI (2016/2017)