Vladimir Nabokov

A writer should have the precision of a poet and the imagination of a scientist. ↗

— Vladimir Nabokov

#poet #precision #scientist #should #writer

Curiously enough, one cannot read a book; one can only reread it. A good reader, a major reader, and active and creative reader is a rereader. ↗

— Vladimir Nabokov

#creativity

A wise reader reads the book of genius not with his heart, not so much with his brain, but with his spine. It is there that occurs the telltale tingle... ↗

— Vladimir Nabokov

#nabokov #quote #reader #reading #brain

My loathings are simple. stupidity, oppression, crime, cruelty, soft music. My pleasures are the most intense known to man: writing and butterfly hunting. ↗

— Vladimir Nabokov

#music

I am sufficiently proud of my knowing something to be modest about my not knowing all. ↗

— Vladimir Nabokov

#hubris #humble #modesty #ego

It's a pity one can't imagine what one can't compare to anything. Genius is an African who dreams up snow. ↗

— Vladimir Nabokov

#anything #compare #dreams #genius #imagine

Readers are not sheep, and not every pen tempts them. ↗

— Vladimir Nabokov

#literature

Nothing revives the past so completely as a smell that was once associated with it. ↗

— Vladimir Nabokov

#completely #nothing #once #past #smell

The good, the admirable reader identifies himself not with the boy or the girl in the book, but with the mind that conceived and composed that book. ↗

— Vladimir Nabokov

#book #boy #composed #conceived #girl

I think like a genius, I write like a distinguished author, and I speak like a child. ↗

— Vladimir Nabokov

#child #distinguished #genius #i #i think