NABOKOV’S BLUES, The Scientific Odyssey of a Literary Genius

1999, 372 pages, 8 b/w plates. Before Vladimir Nabokov rose to fame as a great writer, he was an acknowledged expert on Blues, a diverse butterfly group inhabiting remote parts of South America. His radical new classification scheme was largely forgotten for 50 years until his pioneering research was confirmed.

This is a remarkable account that profiles a complex man with passions for both literature and Lepidoptera. It also chronicles modern scientific research and exploration, vanishing habitats, and decline in biodiversity, for which the Blues are an indicator group. Paperback; 6-1/4 x 9-1/4″.