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amberhayward's review against another edition
4.0
I know I say that I never re-read books- it makes me feel unproductive and I also already know what will happen, so I start skimming and then give up- but I don't remember much of this other than I liked it tremendously. It was sinister and smart and different. I had read Lolita already and thought it was OK but I feel like Laughter in the Dark is almost Hitchcockian in it's darkness.
cheraford's review against another edition
4.0
Thoroughly enjoyed this. Love the way he writes and provides insight into his very flawed charactera
adam613's review against another edition
4.0
"Once upon a time there lived in Berlin, Germany, a man called Albinus. He was rich, respectable, happy; one day he abandoned his wife for the sake of a youthful mistress; he loved; was not loved; and his life ended in disaster."
How gutsy a writer do you have to be to tell the reader in the first sentence what the entire story is about and then spend the whole book still leaving the reader not really knowing what happened? Laughter in the Dark is my first venture into Vladimir Nabokov territory and man, could this guy ever write. Wistful and vehement in nature, Laughter in the Dark is filled with selfish characters and volatile emotions leading to broken homes, broken hearts and loss of life. Albinus is a well to do middle aged man with a family and a settled life seeking thrill and passion in the form of young female attention. All the while completing ignoring the dangers that Margot brings to his life, what ensues is nothing short of tragic and obvious right from the start. This entire novel is like a slow motion car accident waiting to happen, and you can't look away due to the chaotic beauty in the colourful mess and knowledge of impending doom. With Laughter in the Dark, Nabokov has written a brilliant tale of deadly sins filled with wicked prose showing restrained zest and notably sympathetic characters. Suspenseful and poetic from start to finish that will leave you reeling for days.
Here are some of my favourite quotes.
"One can't build up one's life on the quicksands of misfortune. That is a sin against life."
"But no matter how tender and thoughtful he was in his love-making, she knew, all along, that for her it would always be love minus something, whereas the least touch of her first lover had always been a sample of everything."
"A certain man once lost a diamond cuff-link in the wide blue sea, and twenty years later, on the exact day, a Friday apparently, he was eating a large fish - but there was no diamond inside. That's what I like about coincidence."
"Death seems to be merely a bad habit, which nature is at present powerless to overcome. Death often is the point of life's joke."
"The past was safe in its cage. Why not have a look?"
How gutsy a writer do you have to be to tell the reader in the first sentence what the entire story is about and then spend the whole book still leaving the reader not really knowing what happened? Laughter in the Dark is my first venture into Vladimir Nabokov territory and man, could this guy ever write. Wistful and vehement in nature, Laughter in the Dark is filled with selfish characters and volatile emotions leading to broken homes, broken hearts and loss of life. Albinus is a well to do middle aged man with a family and a settled life seeking thrill and passion in the form of young female attention. All the while completing ignoring the dangers that Margot brings to his life, what ensues is nothing short of tragic and obvious right from the start. This entire novel is like a slow motion car accident waiting to happen, and you can't look away due to the chaotic beauty in the colourful mess and knowledge of impending doom. With Laughter in the Dark, Nabokov has written a brilliant tale of deadly sins filled with wicked prose showing restrained zest and notably sympathetic characters. Suspenseful and poetic from start to finish that will leave you reeling for days.
Here are some of my favourite quotes.
"One can't build up one's life on the quicksands of misfortune. That is a sin against life."
"But no matter how tender and thoughtful he was in his love-making, she knew, all along, that for her it would always be love minus something, whereas the least touch of her first lover had always been a sample of everything."
"A certain man once lost a diamond cuff-link in the wide blue sea, and twenty years later, on the exact day, a Friday apparently, he was eating a large fish - but there was no diamond inside. That's what I like about coincidence."
"Death seems to be merely a bad habit, which nature is at present powerless to overcome. Death often is the point of life's joke."
"The past was safe in its cage. Why not have a look?"
baharshahraki's review against another edition
3.0
خدایااااا پس چرا آخرش اینجوری شد؟ چرا مارگو و رکس تیکه تیکه نشدن؟؟
jennittati's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
anarcho_zymurgist's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
There are certainly some clever, tragic themes on display in this early novel by Nabokov, much of which feels familiar and will be refined in later works. As it stands, though, it's still one of his weaker books, despite managing to get a few bitter chuckles out of me.
ahotelrestaurant's review against another edition
dark
funny
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
It's dark; full of selfish, doomed fools; trite (particularly if you too are a writer or artist), good as a first Nabokov if you haven't tried him yet.
abistic's review against another edition
4.0
Za wszystkie nawiązania do świata filmowego. Za wszystkie ukryte sztuczki narratorskie związane ze ślepotą głównego bohatera. Za ledwie wyczuwalną ingerencję pisarza w świat swojej powieści. (Czyli za wszystkie ćmy i szachy również!).
Za wszystko tak bardzo podziwiam Nabokova.
Za wszystko tak bardzo podziwiam Nabokova.