I mean…it was ok…but this book, content aside, definitely made me question what makes a book a classic… ( )

Yes, the writing is beautiful, however I'm ready to be done with this book..... ( )

Lolita is my favorite book of all time. ( )

One has to admire Nabokov for two things at the very least. The first is his mastery of English despite not being born in an English speaking country. To be fair, he was raised speaking English alongside Russian and French, but it's never quite the same learning a language in a country where it's not commonly used.

The other, and this is more particular to "Lolita", is his ability to express the inner mind of his characters so deftly even when one is as repugnant as the protagonist of this story.

In fact, that he did this with Humbert is kind of disturbing. Not being a pedophile I cannot say if his exposition of Humbert's mind was accurate, but it was believable. I never once paused and thought to myself that something Nabokov had written seemed out of place or character.

I considered knocking off a star simply because of the themes, but then I came to my senses. The choice of theme was a disturbing one, not a bad one - and it is certain that this book is notorious enough that I need not worry that someone might read it based on its rating and not be aware of said themes.

As you can see from the edition, I listened, not read, this. The reader/performer was Jeremy Irons and he gave a masterful performance. It was his creepy reading of the initial chapters, where Humbert explains the qualities of nymphettes as well as why he is so drawn to them, that nearly made my put it aside.

Irons was as in-character - smug, arrogant, suave, sophisticated to a tee - as one would expect from a great actor. Five stars to you too, sir.
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I finally got around to reading this book, which I know is probably making you think ‘about time’. Yeah, I know. As an English major I really should have read it before. Sue me. (Please don’t.)
I knew it would be a good book and I knew I would enjoy reading it. Here’s the thing I didn’t enjoy – how creepy it was. Did I anticipate an amount of creepiness? Of course. Did I anticipate it this much? Oh, no.
For those of you who haven’t yet read Lolita, the story is told by Humbert Humbert, a man who has recently passed away and who was convicted of murder, but has written down everything that has happened that led him to this point in his life, in an effort to defend himself and his misdeeds (although he is pretty unforgiveable). Humbert is a paedophile, plain and simple; Humbert even has a word for young beautiful women he’s attracted to – nymphets. Humbert loves them, and he can’t seem to be attracted to anybody but little girls who, he thinks, are so sexy that they’re asking for it.
And he’s fallen in love with a girl named Dolores, AKA Lo, AKA Lolita.
The novel details how Humbert will do absolutely anything to get his hands on her – murder, kidnap, the whole shebang of illegal things that he could get away with and keep the girl. He loves her with an intensity that is honestly terrifying and creepy and he will do anything to keep her under his watchful eyes. He takes her on road trips all over the country in an effort to placate her, moves her from schools and takes her somewhere where they can start afresh, and always telling people that he is her father. He contemplates murdering people who are getting in the way, he controls who she hangs out with and what she does. He, for all intents and purposes, becomes an abuser.
And Lolita, the smart lass, is doing her best to get out of it.
I really do like Lolita as a character. Humbert, while eloquent and intelligent, is a man who is so flawed that there is no redemption for him – he is, after all, doing very illegal things to keep doing one very terrible and illegal thing forever. Lolita, however, is a brilliant character who starts off an innocent child who is simply manipulating her guardian so that she can get what she wants. But she grows into a teenager who knows exactly what is happening, knows her guardian is abusive, and is trying her best to get out of the shitshow he’s dragged her into. And I love her resilience and her cunning, although the story is told by Humbert and so he just thinks of it as insolent and ungrateful. Lolita, unfortunately, does not have the happiest of endings (and here I’m talking about both the character and the novel), but she is a character who does the best of a shitty situation and, not only makes it work for her, but also makes it out alive.
I loved reading this book, especially because how amazing the language used is. For those of you with reservations about the book being erotic, don’t be afraid; there is only maybe one erotic scene the entire novel, and it happens pretty early on. The rest of the time, the novel simply focuses on Humber’s relationship with Lolita and how he will go to any length to make sure she is his forever.
Does Humbert love Lolita? Possibly. He definitely lusts after her as much as he loves her, but I do think that he does eventually fall in love with her. Whether this is cause for redemption is to be left up to individual readers, but I do think that Humbert is a terribly disgusting man (in a world invaded by them) and Lolita deserved better.
My final rating is 4/5. It’s a classic, and I do recommend it.
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