Customer Reviews:

Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0

Lucidly insane, yet crazily calm:

That's an apropos oxymoron taken from Humbert Humbert that best describes this paradox of a novel. Lolita's premise proves to be that of insane & perverse debauchery, yet nonetheless the prose which so aptly packages it demonstrates such skill in a crazily calm manner. Nabokov unequivocally substantiates his high praise as well-deserved with his rich use of symbolism, imagery, and his extensive use of the French language - all of which I enjoyed and appreciated. Having said that, I became somewhat... more info

Lolita, light of my library.......:

One of the most beautifully-constructed novels of the Twentieth Century, it is also one of the most misunderstood. When published in the 1950s, bluenoses criticized "Lolita" for its allegedly frank sexuality. Today, people look at it askance because of our increased sensitivity to child abuse and molestation. In addition, it was written by a Dead White European Male (not to be confused with White Widowed Male). Unfortunately, conservative and liberal critics scrutinizing the surface of "Lolita," as well as... more info

Do NOT call this a love story!:

First of all: Nabokov's chief accomplishment in this novel (other than the oft-noted brilliance of his prose)is to DAMN THE READER who is seduced by it! By creating the persona of Humbert, Nabokov tests the limits of the lure of "European cultured sophistication" making the reader IDENTIFY with, SYMPATHIZE with, and indeed, ANTICIPATE EAGERLY Humbert's quest. If "the heart wants what it wants," and if Humbert wants this one thing passionately enough, "purely" enough (in terms of the singularity of his... more info

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