Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

59 reviews

another_dahlia's review against another edition

dark reflective slow-paced

• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Adult/minor relationship, Rape, Pedophilia, Child abuse, Confinement, Death of parent, Sexual assault, Kidnapping, Sexual violence, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Alcoholism, Gun violence, and Alcohol

Minor: Car accident

lavendercookie's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-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? Yes

4.0

Lolita is completely misinterpreted in pop culture (which I knew going into the book) as many people romanticize it; so I want to make it very clear that this book is about child abuse. Dolores Haze’s story takes place in the late 40’s and early 50’s but it is still very relevant today as child abuse is not talked about enough. It is truly heartbreaking that the book got twisted so much by adaptations and misinterpretations but I can appreciate that Nabokov was attempting to shed light on an under discussed problem in a time where these matters were not discussed in public. The writing is done in such an intentional way that caused me to feel extreme disgust while at the same time finding the poetic quality of the prose beautiful. I personally liked Lolita but anyone interested in reading it must check the list of trigger warnings. Read with caution. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Violence, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Kidnapping, and Incest

spritebabie's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense slow-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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Sexual content, Confinement, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Gaslighting, Car accident, Child abuse, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexism, Violence, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, and Toxic relationship

bi_n_large's review against another edition

challenging dark funny tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Adult/minor relationship, Misogyny, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Pedophilia, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, Incest, and Murder

Moderate: Racial slurs, Fatphobia, Death of parent, and Death

Minor: Racism and Mental illness

cami_y's review against another edition

dark reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Adult/minor relationship, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Child abuse, Sexual content, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Gun violence and Death

alisakbr's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual harassment, Adult/minor relationship, Rape, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Gaslighting, Pedophilia, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Death of parent, Violence, Physical abuse, and Gun violence

Minor: Fatphobia

devin_raquel's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense 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

3.0

In all honesty, I was let down by this novel, especially since this a book that is considered a classic in the literary community. I’m going to assume that somethings got lost in translation, since Nobokov’s orginial manuscript was in Russian. I was expecting to read something revolutionary, but instead, it seemed to me the ramblings of a depressed, self-conscious, pedophile. 
There are a few sections in this novel where I caught myself thinking that Humbert Humbert and Lolita’s romance would be a coveted one if the age gap wasn’t so vast. 
The drolling paragraphs, that went on and on, made for a difficult read and a confusing narrative; I found myself confused more than once within these pages. If you’re looking for a forbidden romance, or even for a book that will make your skin crawl, I would suggest picking up something else.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship

Moderate: Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Rape, Sexual assault, Gaslighting, Pedophilia, Child abuse, Incest, and Kidnapping

Minor: Death of parent, Gun violence, and Murder

josierosser's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Pedophilia, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Incest, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Stalking, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Physical abuse, Death, Grief, Infidelity, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Gun violence, and Misogyny

Minor: Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Alcohol, Medical content, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence

mikala's review against another edition

challenging dark tense 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

4.5

took me forever to finish due to the complexity of the language and also indigestible story themes but the more i read and the more revealed about humbert humberts psyche the more i was able to enjoy the book. the dichotomy between the ugly contents of the book vs the glamorous style of writing made it interesting to read and analyse. i particularly enjoyed nabokovs thoughts on the book at the end. though romantically written the book is not a romance in the slightest but rather a view into the mind of the twisted and decrepit. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Pedophilia, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Physical abuse, and Death of parent

persikan_05's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Incest, Medical content, Pedophilia, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Rape, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Car accident, Child abuse, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Death, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Murder, Pregnancy, Racism, Alcohol, Blood, Death of parent, and Gun violence