Martinis and Roses Book

Nabokov's prose is brilliant even here, so early in his bibliography. But he commits the rookie mistake of assuming that a personal experience that has been so significant in his life (his own exile from Russia) is interesting per se to readers. Glory offers very little apart from this experience, and this, along with the writing, is note really enough to carry the novel. The plot wafts from trifle to trifle, but never really latches onto anything of importance. The ancillary characters are often quirky and charismatic, but add little to the narrative. Glory, though at times pleasant, ultimately misses the mark. This is one for the fans only.