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funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I've always meant to read some Nabokov, but I'm not at all sure that I am constitutionally equipped to handle Lolita. Pnin turns out to have been a great choice: it shows off Nabokov's style, while not requiring even the hint of a trigger warning. (Indeed, Nabokov reportedly wrote chapters of Pnin as a sort of palate cleanser to shake off the heaviness of channeling Humbert Humbert.) Instead of using eloquent self-justification to depict a monster, in Her uses a constant stream of third-party ridicule and comic anecdotes to poke fun at a lovable, charmingly misunderstood main character with a heart of gold.
The writing is enjoyable, if slightly stuffy. The wry little anecdotes seem constantly to be veering off onto absent-minded tangents, but usually turn out to be well constructed enough to wrap up with a neat, understated bow. Once I got used to the fact that there is no actual plot, but just a series of short-story character sketches, I got into the groove and really enjoyed it.
The writing is enjoyable, if slightly stuffy. The wry little anecdotes seem constantly to be veering off onto absent-minded tangents, but usually turn out to be well constructed enough to wrap up with a neat, understated bow. Once I got used to the fact that there is no actual plot, but just a series of short-story character sketches, I got into the groove and really enjoyed it.