Reviews with content warning for Physical abuse - Lolita

CW: There are so many in this bad boy... Pedophilia and victim blaming, mostly, but also SO MUCH statutory rape, Spoilerdeath of a parent, kidnapping, description of a corpse, stalking.
Updated 2020 rating: 3.5 stars

This is one of a short list of books where I can understand why some school districts and governments choose to ban it. While I find the writing to be absolutely amazing, at times almost breathtaking, the contents contained are questionable at best, atrocious at worst.
At times, Lolita is a book that can feel necessary to defend the reasons why you like it. I'll do my best to explain here:

Not to knock down the high-brow element of my review, but there's a Tumblr joke that has made the rounds about how the opposite of a "Manic Pixie Dream Girl" (usually a film trope character) is a "Depressed Goblin Nightmare Man" and how that is often a trope character of literature.
Not only that, it's often a popular trope character. (I'm looking at you, Erik, from The Phantom of the Opera.) Humbert Humbert is absolutely a "Depressed Goblin Nightmare Man" (DGNM from here on out).
He has combination of what it takes to make a DGNM, such as the cocky attitude. While HH spends most of the book degrading himself as "weak" or non-confrontational, he also spends the majority of the book strutting around like Lolita owes herself to him. Whenever she does something he doesn't like, he emotionally manipulates her into sleeping with him or forgiving him. HH also constantly blames his victims, these "Nymphets," who have done nothing more than behave like themselves, children who have no concept of the way he watches, stalks, and harasses many of them. Although he says he knows what he's doing wrong, HH ultimately places the blame on everyone but himself.

And Nabokov clearly knows what he's doing.
I've often noticed that many writers of "high" literature explore taboo topics far, far past the bounds of normalcy or even understanding. But it takes both an excellent writer and a committed reader to see past the surface topic to find the commentary underneath. Which isn't to say I blame anyone who hates or chooses not to even attempt this book because of the topic - I absolutely understand why people would want to chuck this book off a cliff.
But when I read it, I can see Nabokov's sarcastic attitude behind the words, the way he twists HH's own words against him as a narrator, making him at once unreliable and perfectly believable in his earnestness.
Lolita is clearly a girl suffering intense distress from her, at times, neglectful mother to her constant abuse and rape at the hands of HH. She shows many signs of abused children, from hiding food and money to her acting out in school and losing interest in hobbies.
There are many marks of Nabokov's deep involvement with these characters. I love the way he wrote this terrible book, and his characters are completely fascinating to me.

Additionally, I read this book for the first time just as I graduated high school, when I was personally quite enraptured by man DGNM in media. Outside of school work, this was one of the first "adult" "literature" books I elected to read on my own and I was completely swept away by the writing.
I'd like to think I've matured enough now as a reader to critique HH's status as a DGNM and as a writer to really absorb and understand the craft that went into this novel.
It's hard to say I "like" this book, but I would, perhaps, say I respect it. While perhaps no longer a 5-star because of my more nuanced understanding of the actual topic, rather than reading it when I was, in fact, still a teenager/child myself, the strong writing will always push it close to 4-stars for me.

Content Warnings

marinarc's review against another edition

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dark sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

Content Warnings

ferdavilareads's review against another edition

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dark sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

A weird unnerving and at times disgusting book. The love of Humbert for Lolita is a wicked disturbing kind of love. It is, in a way, a great love story, as many describe it. Vladimir’s writing style is marvelous and confusing at times. It is a very heavy book and I would not recommend it if you are triggered by sexual assault/rape.

Content Warnings

freyadunne's review against another edition

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challenging dark slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Content Warnings

davidrb's review against another edition

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challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

Not giving this one a rating.

One of my favorite books when it comes to technical skill and the clear love and talent Nabokov has for his craft, a marvel of characterization that is almost too strong, and at the same time the worst book to actually read. This is my first time returning to it since I was about Dolly's age, and it's as profoundly upsetting as it gets. Nobody wins.

Content Warnings

fancymcgee's review against another edition

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fuck this book and everything it stands for

Content Warnings

jmcordero's review against another edition

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challenging dark sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Content Warnings

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