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“Simultaneously the most beautiful and the most repulsive book that I've read in a long time. I didn't know whether to rush through it, in order to get the ordeal behind me as quickly as possible, or whether to linger on the carefully crafted, darkly humorous prose that somehow evokes sympathy for the depraved H.H. Read it...but only if you've got a strong stomach.
ologosmou wrote this review Monday, July 9 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
(Incidentally, Nabokov served on the Cornell faculty from 1948-1959, and LOLITA was published during his tenure there.)”
“One of the most repulsively compelling novels ever written, you'll understand exactly why Humbert Humbert finds Lolita so mesmerizing. Probably not a good choice to read this if you have young daughters. Nabokov was a huge Dickens fan himself, and it's been suggested (pretty convincingly) that this is his retelling of Dickens's The Old Curiosity Shop.”
Dame Dixie wrote this review Saturday, July 7 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Disturbing, but good...a book you probably don't want people to see you're reading because of the whole pedophilia thing, but a book that will be hard to put down when you start”
alt171psu wrote this review Thursday, July 5 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“The first paragraph in this book is enough to make me love it, but the prose continues to be absolutely beautiful. How does Nabokov make you sympathize with a child molester? Sheer genius, that's how.”
teahut wrote this review Monday, July 2 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“I never finished it, it got worse and worse... The only thing that kept me reading as far as I did, was the fact that is so beautifully written.”
Pauline wrote this review Sunday, July 1 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“I always struggle with accurately describing Lolita, since the premise is inherently rather disturbing. But Nabokov's style is quite entrancing, and I found myself loving this book. There's a real twisted beauty in the way Humbert Humbert justifies his feelings and actions, and I think one of the most interesting things about the book is looking past the first-person perspective and seeing how Humbert distorts reality.
smammers wrote this review Sunday, September 2 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
An excellent read, and I'm looking forward to reading more by Nabokov.”
“I have the version of the book with that quote from Vanity Fair about *Lolita* being the only really convincing love story of the twentieth century. Nabakov calls it a story about his love affair with the English language, so I suppose that is sort of true. ^_^;
Peach wrote this review Thursday, June 28 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Really, though, this book is one of my all-time favorites. The narrator might just be the most horrible and *conceited* characters in English literature, but the author gives him some really beautiful words.
The fact that *Lolita* is still shocking is probably to its credit. How many other classic books that were published half a century ago can claim to keep scandalizing readers today?”
