Reviews with content warning for Adult/minor relationship - Lolita

I don't even know what to rate this, it certainly made me immensely uncomfortable and there were often times where the author went on a ramble. I understand the purpose of this book, I just don't know that I needed to read it to get that insight.

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readingoccasionally89's review against another edition

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challenging dark sad tense medium-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

4.5

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julesadventurezone's review against another edition

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challenging dark medium-paced

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

4.25

Anyone who thinks this is a romance or a comedy has lost their last brain cell. It is well written and witty but it is not fun or romantic.
Worth the read I just had to take occasional breaks because I got too angry.

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vik88's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective 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? Yes

3.5

This is only my second classic book, the first being an unsuccessful attempt to read 'Dracula'. The experience was certainly interesting.

I find that the written moments of the book that I enjoyed most were the descriptions of the trip across the States. They invoked this aesthetic sense of mundanity alongside a romanticisation of these ordinary things.

However, it is the sense of the characters a reader gets throughout the book that has caught (and kept) my attention. The complexity of the characters is astounding - it's been a long time since I read a book that has equally made me sympathetic and annoyed at all the characters the reader encounters.

It's Lolita. The way she's encouraged to express her innocence in a situation where doing so has known consequences. It's the way some of her behaviour annoyed me due to its immature nature yet I simultaneously had to acknowledge that Lolita was a child and, therefore, it was expected (even encouraged and welcomed by Humbert). It's Lolita's acknowledgment of her situation and the undertone of the implied scenes. It's Dolly Schiller and her attitude towards Humbert at the very end. All of these form this image of a child who was doing the best she could in a no-win situation and that refused to be dragged down by traumatic experiences.

It's Humbert. It's his manipulation tactics that suggest intelligence and cunning (traits that are usually admired) alongside his paranoia and possessive behaviour that leaves an impression of him as a pathetic character. It's the way Humbert says Lolita is his 'one true love' and the object of all his desires, while being frequently enamored with other prepubescents. It's the way I have to acknowledge his love for Lolita as being true but also as being selfish and self-absorbed. The way he accepts, at the beginning of the book, that after Lolita is no longer a 'nymphet' his desire for her will stop and yet, at the end, his desire remains. It shows Humbert as a flawed, likable-yet-not human being that is prone to self-delusion in the moment but one that has, in the writing of the book, reflected and acknowledged his actions and their consequences.

I was bored; I was compelled; I was frustrated; I was content.

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galactic_gigi's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional 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

4.5

This book is absolutely horrifying! Don‘t get me wrong, the writing is beautiful and lyrical and so poetic. But what the narrator is describing are the absolute mad delusions of a monster targeting, manipulating and abusing a child. The unreliability and him trying to defend himself in front of the readers is bringing the reader closer to the narrator then one might want or feel comfortable with. It‘s a very good book and I recommend reading it, but there are a lot of times where I needed to take a break before nearly hurling the book against a wall. Please consult trigger warnings before reading!

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