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challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
god this book was heartbreaking. it follows a man named humbert humbert who falls in love with his step daughter, and you know it's wrong but because humbert is an unreliable narrator he makes you believe that he is actually in love with his 'lolita' when in reality she is just a child who wanted a normal life and a normal family.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
my thoughts are so chaotic from this book.
The story, of course, is disturbing and i cannot understand how people can misinterpretated/romanticized it.
Humbert made my blood boil, made me want to bag my head against the wall — but, that's kind of his purpose.
Nabokov's writing is poetically delicious, i loved the way this was written. There are disturbing quotes in his poetic writing that just ate.
the only thing — the reason it's not five stars — is that the part where they travel through US was boring me and the amount of town names etc:. we're overwhelming.
that's all 🎀
Humbert made my blood boil, made me want to bag my head against the wall — but, that's kind of his purpose.
Nabokov's writing is poetically delicious, i loved the way this was written. There are disturbing quotes in his poetic writing that just ate.
the only thing — the reason it's not five stars — is that the part where they travel through US was boring me and the amount of town names etc:. we're overwhelming.
that's all 🎀
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, Rape, Kidnapping
Minor: Kidnapping, Murder
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I find myself in a pickle of sorts in reviewing this book- I cannot in good faith blindly recommend it, and yet it is simultaneously the most incredible text I have ever engaged with. Lolita simply redefines the standard of the masterpiece, building not a glass ceiling (such tangibilities are beneath it), rather, casting the colloquial “bar” to the very heavens, where it may never be seen again. Only read this book if you are prepared to finish it- know too that this is no simple matter- but read this book, if you may be so bold. It will challenge you, and you may want to hurl it into a fire at times, but still, you simply must make it to that final page. This is a book that redefines the 5th star, and shakes any attempt at literary tier lists to its very core.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Incest, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Kidnapping, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I need you, the reader, to imagine us, for we don’t really exist if you don’t.
There’s no doubt that Nabokov’s Lolita is a timeless classic, and I finally understand why. Primarily, the prose is gorgeous. I’ve never been so in awe of an author’s writing style and paused repeatedly to jot down quotes or dog-ear pages. Nabokov’s manipulation of narration (and the strength of Humbert Humbert’s personal voice) is similarly masterful, and I was struck by how fundamental the novel’s foreword is to understanding the story. It must also be noted that Humbert Humbert is a well-crafted, terrifying character whose gaze aptly reflects our society’s obsession with young girls, a messaging still of undeniable relevance in the 21st century.
Before reading, I was both fascinated by Lolita’s cultural impact and confused by the purpose of such a novel. It seemed perplexing that an author would want to tell such a viscerally uncomfortable story, and it’s a question I couldn’t properly answer until reading Nabokov’s afterword. He argues that “I am neither a reader nor writer of didactic fiction, and, despite John Ray’s assertion, Lolita has no moral in tow.” Instead, its purpose is realism, a cautionary tale that stands the test of time because of how it is continually misconstrued by paedophiles and victims alike. I’m glad to have finally read it and will be thinking about its cultural relevance for a long time.
I’ve (pretty superficially) knocked half a star off for the verbose descriptions. Humbert Humbert’s excessive ramblings while traipsing the country with Lo were unnecessary and arguably detrimental to the flow of the narrative.
Overall a powerful read, and I highly recommend giving it a shot if you’re in the right mental place. Definitely look up the content warnings, though.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Gun violence, Pedophilia, Stalking
Moderate: Incest, Rape, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder
Minor: Racism
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest, Sexual assault
Moderate: Violence
dark
slow-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Lolita, that highly controversial novel that set a before and after not only in American literature, but in modern culture as a whole. That love letter to monstrous indulgence, the attempt of a psychopath to redeem his soul and make his and his victim's lives one inmortal story. As he said "I am thinking of aurochs and angels, the secret of durable pigments, prophetic sonnets, the refuge of art. And this is the only immortality you and I may share, my Lolita".
Maybe one of the most remarcable things about this story is the way it's told. We are warned at the beginning of what this text really is: a confession and desperate attempt of a criminal to save himself. One that "should make all of us apply ourselves with still greater vigilance and vision to the task of bringing up a better generation in a safer world". Its narrator, a pedophile that both tries to trick you into beeling his side of the story and recognizes what he's done, one you cannot fully believe since he himself said that "I have camouflaged what I could so as not to hurt people". Which he does in the most poetical kind of way, almost convincing you for some bits until you get to the most sordid parts and comments, that reminds you of what he really is.
Something really interesting about him is the juxtaposition between the romantic and the monster, between "concupiscent co-operation (or the illusion of it) to dirty old man, from romance to self-revolution, from reciprocation to the sordid solipsism of sperm on the hand. Nabokov's subject and Humbert's affliction is the discrepancy between the dizzy desire and the dingy thruth". As Humbert said "Despite the horrible hopelessness of it all, I still dwelled deep in my elected paradise—a paradise whose skies were the color of hell-flames—bit still a paradise". And as well recognized later on, "I loved you. I was a pentapod monster, but I loved you. I was despicable and brutal, and turpid, and everything, mais je t'aimais, je t'aimais! And there were times when I knew how you felt, and it was hell to know it, my little one. Lolita girl, brave Dolly Schiller". He knew that he was hurting her, but he kept on, he knew that he was monstrous, but he kept on, and this would have never ended, if Dolores wouldn't have scaped.
Maybe that's why that's one of the most heartbreaking parts of the story. The criminal knew how sordidly he had ruined Dolores's live, but he kept on, telling himself that he loved her. He used this little child until she bled, he knew she hated him, and still tried to make himself and us believe that he was the misunderstood poet, the victim somehow. But still he doesn't lay flat, he is not just "the bad guy" he's a monster, but he has dimensions, a story to tell after and before, some humanness in him that still makes us feel sorry somehow, even if after we still feel sick of what he's done.
Lolita is a terrifying story, in which not only a child was kidnapped but failed by the system that was supposed to protect her, by the people around them who had to have suspission that something was off, and even by the legacy it left, since Lolita became both a sexual figure and a "romance" story, with people commenting on the novel as "a record of Nabokov's love affair with the romantic novel". For me, it's the confession of a monstrous passion from the point of view of the aggressor, one that's written trying to cover what happened and you still see through the lies, one with multidimensional characters and story that fills you with rage, disgust and helplessness, and a narrative that tries to trick you. And for that, it's a masterpiece of the English language, a gem that's hard to look at, but you still should, a classic of American literature.
Maybe one of the most remarcable things about this story is the way it's told. We are warned at the beginning of what this text really is: a confession and desperate attempt of a criminal to save himself. One that "should make all of us apply ourselves with still greater vigilance and vision to the task of bringing up a better generation in a safer world". Its narrator, a pedophile that both tries to trick you into beeling his side of the story and recognizes what he's done, one you cannot fully believe since he himself said that "I have camouflaged what I could so as not to hurt people". Which he does in the most poetical kind of way, almost convincing you for some bits until you get to the most sordid parts and comments, that reminds you of what he really is.
Something really interesting about him is the juxtaposition between the romantic and the monster, between "concupiscent co-operation (or the illusion of it) to dirty old man, from romance to self-revolution, from reciprocation to the sordid solipsism of sperm on the hand. Nabokov's subject and Humbert's affliction is the discrepancy between the dizzy desire and the dingy thruth". As Humbert said "Despite the horrible hopelessness of it all, I still dwelled deep in my elected paradise—a paradise whose skies were the color of hell-flames—bit still a paradise". And as well recognized later on, "I loved you. I was a pentapod monster, but I loved you. I was despicable and brutal, and turpid, and everything, mais je t'aimais, je t'aimais! And there were times when I knew how you felt, and it was hell to know it, my little one. Lolita girl, brave Dolly Schiller". He knew that he was hurting her, but he kept on, he knew that he was monstrous, but he kept on, and this would have never ended, if Dolores wouldn't have scaped.
Maybe that's why that's one of the most heartbreaking parts of the story. The criminal knew how sordidly he had ruined Dolores's live, but he kept on, telling himself that he loved her. He used this little child until she bled, he knew she hated him, and still tried to make himself and us believe that he was the misunderstood poet, the victim somehow. But still he doesn't lay flat, he is not just "the bad guy" he's a monster, but he has dimensions, a story to tell after and before, some humanness in him that still makes us feel sorry somehow, even if after we still feel sick of what he's done.
Lolita is a terrifying story, in which not only a child was kidnapped but failed by the system that was supposed to protect her, by the people around them who had to have suspission that something was off, and even by the legacy it left, since Lolita became both a sexual figure and a "romance" story, with people commenting on the novel as "a record of Nabokov's love affair with the romantic novel". For me, it's the confession of a monstrous passion from the point of view of the aggressor, one that's written trying to cover what happened and you still see through the lies, one with multidimensional characters and story that fills you with rage, disgust and helplessness, and a narrative that tries to trick you. And for that, it's a masterpiece of the English language, a gem that's hard to look at, but you still should, a classic of American literature.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Murder, Pregnancy
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Kidnapping
Minor: Death, Gun violence, Sexual content, Blood, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder
dark
emotional
sad
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual violence, Death of parent, Gaslighting
Moderate: Alcoholism, Incest, Car accident
challenging
dark
tense
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
nabokov was crazyyy for this one. its wild how laser targeted his read is of the kind of joyless motherfuckers who fantasize about having complete control over little girls to avoid taking control of their own lives. ive known a humbert humbert and it's likely you know one too
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Incest, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment
Moderate: Racism, Lesbophobia