Poems 1918–1947: Superman's Lament

This collection of poems includes both well-known works and archival finds published for the first time.

The present collection of Vladimir Nabokov’s poems (1899–1977) comprises both works already well known and pieces published for the first time, written in Europe and America in 1918–1947. Newly deciphered poems and those newly found in the author’s archive—among them “The Legend of the Moon” (1920), “Electricity” (1920), “On the Wild North” (1920), “Olympicum” (1921)—significantly enrich the Russian part of his bilingual poetic legacy and reveal unknown aspects of his creative development. In the poetry of the famous author of “Lolita” and “Ada,” one can find the origins and premises of the distinctiveness of his prose: subtle psychological depth, vivid visual imagery of descriptions, precise observations, a special “mirroredness” of style, and the combination of fiction with autobiographical elements.

For the first time, the poems “Two” (1919), “The Legend of the Moon,” “Electricity,” and “On the Wild North” are published; the text of the most significant of Nabokov’s early poems, “Sunny Dream” (1923), has been checked anew against the manuscript.

In the Appendix, another recent archival discovery is published: “The Complaint of the Superman” (1942)—an original Nabokov interpretation of the image of the hero from American comics. The edition is provided with comments and illustrative material.