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A review by smacey
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
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
4.5
3/21/2024: I will be writing a review of this book eventually, but with nearly a year going by since I read it, I have finally come to the conclusion that I am giving it 4 stars which is not at all what I was expecting or thinking to rate it before and during my reading...
UPDATE WITH ACTUAL REVIEW ONE AND A HALF YEARS LATER (8/26/2024):
4.50/5.00
After hating this book for the first half of it and then getting invested but not knowing how I felt about it during the second half, I look back and understand why it is considered a literary classic, though it's not for the reasons I thought/are widely believed (thank God). THIS IS NOT A BEAUTIFUL, FORBIDDEN LOVE STORY. If that is what you got from reading it... Please think about the possibility that it was so well-written as being from the perspective of a master manipulator that you may have yourself been manipulated into believing that there could be anything romantic, beautiful, or at all right about a relationship between a fully grown adult man and pre-pubescent girl.
As someone who is fascinated by psychology and criminology and enjoys reading fucked up stories, this was an excellent read. I thought I was going to hate it. I DID initially hate it, actually. Even after first finishing the book, I wasn't sure what I thought about it. But it is written so impeccably well and gives such an interesting perspective into the mind and point of view of a pedophile who actively grooms a young girl and the ways in which he justifies his disturbing urges he has and detestable actions he commits towards this 12-year-old girl, all the way up to the end of his life, long after the actual story took place.
As someone who is disturbed by adult men who are attracted to minors and utterly disgusted by those men who act on those urges they have towards minors but fascinated by the psyche of those men, I very much appreciate this work and the way in which it illustrates the way such a person may think and justify their thoughts and behaviors.
As someone who initially picked up this book because I am a huge Lana Del Rey fan and very aware of her love of Nabokov as a writer and the story of Lolita as well as the influence Lolita had on much of her early music, particularly that on the Born to Die album (which is also the album which caused my discovery of her and first invoked a deep admiration for her as an artist and human being), I love that this is a work that can also in a sense speak to women who have had any sort of similar experience/ever been groomed and/or manipulated by a drastically older man/ever been manipulated into believing that this story or any similar stories are indeed romantic or beautiful or at all right and that they may be able to see themselves in Lolita.
As someone who is repulsed by "adult-minor relationships" and enraged by any act of sexual harassment or assault, this was at times a very difficult read.
As someone who loved the book My Dark Vanessa and looks forward to reading others like it, I am so glad Lolita exists and inspired similar, yet arguably more important stories that instead give a voice to the young female victims of the type of individuals that Humbert Humbert represents.
There are so many complexities and nuances to Lolita in all aspects (plot, character, setting, writing, you name it) and honestly is a book I want to read a second time through eventually to get a better grasp on all there is to it. It is not an easy read in any way really and is by no means perfect, but it is worth the time and energy it takes to get through and process. I look forward to diving more into the implications the publishing of this book in the 50s had, the reasoning Nabokov had behind writing it in the first place, and the impact it has had on those who have read it, for better or for worse. Love it or hate it, it has been cemented as an important literary work and I truly believe will always be viewed as such. I think reading this earlier in my life, particularly with the guidance of a knowledgeable, safe, female adult, could have been so beneficial to me, but nonetheless I am happy that I finally picked it up, read it all the way through, and allowed myself to form my own opinion on it regardless of the controversies that surround it and what others have to say about it.
UPDATE WITH ACTUAL REVIEW ONE AND A HALF YEARS LATER (8/26/2024):
4.50/5.00
After hating this book for the first half of it and then getting invested but not knowing how I felt about it during the second half, I look back and understand why it is considered a literary classic, though it's not for the reasons I thought/are widely believed (thank God). THIS IS NOT A BEAUTIFUL, FORBIDDEN LOVE STORY. If that is what you got from reading it... Please think about the possibility that it was so well-written as being from the perspective of a master manipulator that you may have yourself been manipulated into believing that there could be anything romantic, beautiful, or at all right about a relationship between a fully grown adult man and pre-pubescent girl.
As someone who is fascinated by psychology and criminology and enjoys reading fucked up stories, this was an excellent read. I thought I was going to hate it. I DID initially hate it, actually. Even after first finishing the book, I wasn't sure what I thought about it. But it is written so impeccably well and gives such an interesting perspective into the mind and point of view of a pedophile who actively grooms a young girl and the ways in which he justifies his disturbing urges he has and detestable actions he commits towards this 12-year-old girl, all the way up to the end of his life, long after the actual story took place.
As someone who is disturbed by adult men who are attracted to minors and utterly disgusted by those men who act on those urges they have towards minors but fascinated by the psyche of those men, I very much appreciate this work and the way in which it illustrates the way such a person may think and justify their thoughts and behaviors.
As someone who initially picked up this book because I am a huge Lana Del Rey fan and very aware of her love of Nabokov as a writer and the story of Lolita as well as the influence Lolita had on much of her early music, particularly that on the Born to Die album (which is also the album which caused my discovery of her and first invoked a deep admiration for her as an artist and human being), I love that this is a work that can also in a sense speak to women who have had any sort of similar experience/ever been groomed and/or manipulated by a drastically older man/ever been manipulated into believing that this story or any similar stories are indeed romantic or beautiful or at all right and that they may be able to see themselves in Lolita.
As someone who is repulsed by "adult-minor relationships" and enraged by any act of sexual harassment or assault, this was at times a very difficult read.
As someone who loved the book My Dark Vanessa and looks forward to reading others like it, I am so glad Lolita exists and inspired similar, yet arguably more important stories that instead give a voice to the young female victims of the type of individuals that Humbert Humbert represents.
There are so many complexities and nuances to Lolita in all aspects (plot, character, setting, writing, you name it) and honestly is a book I want to read a second time through eventually to get a better grasp on all there is to it. It is not an easy read in any way really and is by no means perfect, but it is worth the time and energy it takes to get through and process. I look forward to diving more into the implications the publishing of this book in the 50s had, the reasoning Nabokov had behind writing it in the first place, and the impact it has had on those who have read it, for better or for worse. Love it or hate it, it has been cemented as an important literary work and I truly believe will always be viewed as such. I think reading this earlier in my life, particularly with the guidance of a knowledgeable, safe, female adult, could have been so beneficial to me, but nonetheless I am happy that I finally picked it up, read it all the way through, and allowed myself to form my own opinion on it regardless of the controversies that surround it and what others have to say about it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Incest, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Mental illness, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Trafficking, and Murder