Annotations by Alexey Sklyarenko

Describing Flavita (the Russian Scrabble), Van Veen (the narrator and main character in VN’s novel Ada, 1969) mentions an unfortunate English tourist, a Walter C. Keyway, Esq., whom Baron Klim Avidov (anagram of Vladimir Nabokov) catapulted with an uppercut into the porter’s lodge for his jokingly remarking how clever it was to drop the first letter of one’s name in order to use it as a particule, at the Gritz, in Venezia Rossa:

According to Humbert Humbert (the narrator and main character in VN’s novel Lolita, 1955), he picked up Rita one depraved May evening somewhere between Montreal and New York, or more narrowly, between Toylestown and Blake, at a darkishly burning bar under the sign of the Tiger-moth:

In VN's novel Lolita (1955) Lolita’s mother dies under the wheels of a truck because of a neighbor’s hysterical dog. On the day of Charlotte’s death Humbert Humbert visits Dr Byron (the Haze family physician):

In Canto One of his poem John Shade (the poet in VN’s novel Pale Fire, 1962) describes his childhood and says that he was brought up by dear bizarre Aunt Maud:

In Canto Two of his poem John Shade (the poet in VN’s novel Pale Fire, 1962) describes his daughter’s tragic death and mentions the preview of Remorse:

"Was that the phone?" You listened at the door.

More headlights in the fog. There was no sense

In window-rubbing: only some white fence

And the reflector poles passed by unmasked.

"Are we quite sure she's acting right?" you asked.

Describing Gradus' looks, Kinbote (in VN's novel Pale Fire, 1962, Shade's mad commentator who imagines that he is Charles the Beloved, the last self-exiled king of Zembla) mentions the bleak oblong of Gradus' face and his somewhat mesmeric organs of vision:

In Canto Two of his poem John Shade (the poet in VN's novel Pale Fire, 1962) tells about his dead daughter (whose name he never mentions) and says:

I think she always nursed a small mad hope. (Line 383)

In his story The Dance of Death (1927) Algernon Blackwood (an English writer, 1869-1951) mentions an impossible hope wakened by Nature:

Describing Shade's last birthday (July 5, 1959), Kinbote (in VN’s novel Pale Fire, 1962, Shade's mad commentator who imagines that he is Charles the Beloved, the last self-exiled king of Zembla) calls old Dr. Sutton (one of the guests at Shade's birthday party) "a snowy-headed, perfectly oval little gentleman:"

The three main characters in VN’s novel Pale Fire (1962) are the poet Shade, his commentator Kinbote (who imagines that he is Charles the Beloved, the last self-exiled king of Zembla) and his murderer Gradus (a member of the Shadows, a regicidal organization). In his Commentary to Shade's poem Kinbote mockingly calls Gradus (who contended that the real origin of his name should be sought in the Russian word for grape, vinograd) “Vinogradus” and “Leningradus” and repeats the word “squeeze” three times:

The three main characters in VN’s novel Pale Fire (1962) are the poet Shade, his commentator Kinbote (who imagines that he is Charles the Beloved, the last self-exiled king of Zembla) and his murderer Gradus (a member of the Shadows, a regicidal organization). According to Kinbote, killing John Shade was Gradus' "crowning blunder:"