Lolita

Rating:
Summary: A beautifully written novel
Review: "Lolita", by Nabokov, is a very intelligent account of a madmen's love affair with a pubescent girl. It is also a comedy of satiric and ironic proportions the like of which one would be hard-pressed to find. The subject matter in this book is at once very offensive, but the first person narraration is so convincing that the reader will eventually adapt to Humbert's narraration style and only then will s/he appreciate what the story is really about. Once, you get past the fact that Humbert is a madman in love with a child then you can take the story for what it really is - a love story, albeit a tragic, psychotic, and terribly unhealthy love story. I for one had some sympathy for Humbert for the sheer reason that he had a short love affair with a girl in his boyhood Europe who he lost because of typhus. He even said that without her there would never be any Lolita. Nabokov's writing style is extremely eloquent and almost stream-of-concsiousness. I have never read another book where I found a character who was not only so deeply in love with another, but also who could articulate that love into words. Nabokov does this with ease and the amazing thing is that English isn't even his mother tongue. I have only read this book one time, but I'll read it again because I have an intuition that it works on many levels simultaneously. It can also be a criticism of new-world American culture from the perspective of an old-world European. It is also funny. I found myself laughing aloud at some points in the novel only to be reminded in the next page that this was a deep and tragically sad love story. Why read Lolita? If your intersted in an honest and hilarious account of a madman's affair with a young girl, then this is for you. On the other hand, if you find yourself throroughly repulsed by a pedophile, then perhaps you should stay away. I find it more worthwhile to try and understand this madman despite all the sick, meandering thoughts that can go through his head in a single spell. Nabokov's brilliant and evocative mastery of the english language is on fine display in this novel, and that alone is reason enough to read it.

Rating:
Summary: stimulating read
Review: A moving book that will radicalize the way in which one thinks of illegal relationships, love and American life. Not to be frightened, however, one will not be thrown into apostate, nor is this an aphrodisiacal book. It is too well written. Lolita is beautiful and deranged account of a quasi-incestuous relationship.

Nabokov is an excellent writer in all the intimacy he conveys in Lolita. One can create a laundry list of charges against the book, but I find it frivolous. The lyrical beauty and dramatic punctuations created by the vignette writing invokes little moments of exaltation. Constantly one is re-negotiating the space between the characters relationship, reader's relationship with the characters, and reader's relationship with the author.

Rating:
Summary: i haven't actually read the book but i loved the movie.
Review: Well had my step father not got out this movie and had i not been bored one night and had i not decided to watch this film i would never have discovered such a sad but romantic and enchanting film.Now that i have seen the movie i am very eager to read the book.
A middleaged man travels to America to work as a teacher and when he stays with a woman (Charlotte Hayes)he is reminded of his childhood sweetheart whom he has never got over and still pines for when he sees Charlottes daughter Lolita and he immediatly falls in love with her this man(Humbert Humbert)plots ways in which he can rid Charlotte who he has now married in order to become Lolita's only gaurdian and when Charlotte gets killed by acident he and Lolita travel America together.
I do not want to reveal anymore than i already have done but the best way to find out about this wonderful story is to rent the video and/or read the book.
I know this story is very contrivercial but you should see it for yourself in order to make an opinion and i must say i laughed i smiled and i cried this is a very moving and unforgettable story.

Rating:
Summary: Great imaginative literature
Review: On the sunny porch at Chiang Mai University today, a colleague told me this: the first time he read "Lolita," he was (obviously) looking for the sexual theme, and found it. But the second time through, the novel seemed more important to him as a devastating satire of American values.

The third time he read it, it just seemed sad.

But the fourth time through, gave him a revelation: "This book is all about DEATH!"

"Lolita" works on many levels.

Highly recommended!

Rating:
Summary: Don't Become Daunted By Those Scanty One Star Reviews
Review: If you are reading this review in an attempt to decide whether or not to read this book, please remember: Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and since we are all quite diverse, disparity will always exist amongst our opinions. Furthermore, with that said, I doubt that any novel reviewed on this website will be devoid of those one and two star cynics....it's just a matter of taste and some people just have poor taste.

But as for Lolita, I will merely state that it is a literary paradigm. I'm sure by now that you probably have a ostensible idea of what the novel is about, so I will address the subject matter as an ancillary concept. What is most important about this novel is the prose. Even if you are so narrow-minded as to become disgusted with the subject matter -- which is matter-of-factly portrayed with an ecstatic sense of urbanity -- you will at least walk away from this book with a greater appreciation for the English language, a broader vocabulary and the satisfaction of knowing the difference between a mediocre writer and a truly great one.

In addition, on another note, I would like to address some of the arguments of the cynical and callow reviewers. First, dialogue is overrated -- if you have to read a novel that is filled with dialogue and suspense in order to maintain your reading interest, then you obviously either have a very low intellectual capacity or some sort of attention deficit disorder, and so I would suggest that you either improve your education or seek psychological help. Secondly, didactic techniques should be used as subtly as possible...no author can change the world or the way society functions, so he should keep his own political agenda to himself and not use his novel as a platform in order to voice his (or her) deeply-rooted beliefs; i.e. if you need a book to change your life for you, you should re-think your philosophy and find out why you're so insecure about who you are. Nabokov is genius, without even a diminutive doubt, he is the greatest writer of English prose to ever be published. Furthermore, in Lolita he is not trying to debase women -- he had a very healthy relationship with his wife, Vera, whom he devoted every one of his novels to and openly stated that he would not be the writer that he was if it were not for her. What he was doing, however, was writing from the perspective of Humbert Humbert...it's called thinking, or rather writing, outside of the box. Too many writers narcissistically write about their own lives, rearranging the plot a bit and re-naming the characters -- an easy way of being unoriginal. Nabokov, on the other hand, used a rare tool called imagination, and wrote about other people, showing their perspective on things. He does not share the same views as Humbert Humbert, they are two totally different people and anyone who has read his biography will know that.

Anyway, in conspectus, it is a very worthwhile reading, if for no other reason than to expand your vocabulary and appreciation for the art of literature. Don't listen to the critics, read it for yourself and form your own opinion...Nabokov unfortunately passed away in 1977, therefore even if you are disgusted with the novel, he will never receive a penny of its royalties so you will have not even contributed to the cause of an author that you dislike. And oh, by the way, when you get to part two -- the part that all the cynics claim is too long and boring -- look for the little descriptions of all the secondary details in the travel scenes, they're obscenely beautiful and reminiscent...it's exactly those kinds of little things that we overlook in life and take for granted, yet in all certainty they are the most significant, causing life to have meaning and depth.

Rating:
Summary: A Book For Perverted Sickos
Review: This book tackles the topic of pedophilia. The first book is excellent, with great word play, a tantalizing storyline, and wonderfully hilarious humor. Read the first book and go away satisfied that you have rebelled against the status quo. Yay for sickos. But the second book is a piece of ****.

Rating:
Summary: Nabokov's Great American Novel
Review: "Lolita" has undeservedly earned a reputation for being the most tiltilating, sexually expressive novel in recent times. It is more importantly an erudite, often hilarious, look at a clash between cultures: the suave, refined, genteel world of European aristocracy exemplified by Humbert Humbert versus the ripening, fast-paced adolescent realm of American society represented by Delores "Lolita" Haze. Humbert Humbert's lecherous affair with the nymphet Lolita may seem repellant to some, but it soon becomes an engrossing tale of two independent spirits portrayed by Nabokov through his lyrical, often poetic, prose. Nabokov is a master of recording small, often inconsequential details, which nevertheless play a major part in describing the behavior of both protagonists. And last, but not least, it evolves inexcorably into a spellbinding love story as well as a humorous clash between two radically different cultures. Without question it is one of the finest American novels published during the latter half of the 20th Century.

Rating:
Summary: Obsession & Cultural Superiority
Review: Of the controversial novels out there, Lolita surely is at the top of the heap. Once banned and now available to the general public, I don't think many would argue about its divisive nature. Some feel that the subject matter in of itself is enough to deem it a "bad book" while others praise its style and literary content. A few others feel that it's a love story while others claim it misogynistic.

Any book, no matter how well written, centering on the abusive, sexual relationship between a middle-aged man and teenage girl will cause a controversy. Some see this as being portrayed in a light, comedic manner but I see the opposite. Humbert is a sad shell of a human obsessed with a prepubescent girl, Lolita. The extent to which he lowers himself to maintain his perversion only reinforces the fact that he is sick, highly intelligent but very sick. I don't see how this is portrayed as a love story that so many claim.

His obsessiveness carries over into his description of all that is wrong and middle class with American society from the viewpoint of a classic European aristocrat. He makes countless references to the tacky inns, objects, and people they encounter during their trek across America. Readers may be confusing Nabakov's wit and motives behind his highly satirical style as condoning pedophilia. For me this is just further evidence of Humbert's malaise: It's the only way he can hang onto his sense of cultural superiority amidst depravity. By the way, theyfre hilarious.

It is Nabakovfs ability to take such a controversial subject and turn it into an extremely enjoyable read that sets him apart. His writing style while mostly narrative based is magnificent. We get a unique glimpse into a deranged mind that only Nabakov could deliver in such beautiful literary fashion.

Lolita: The sad account of a man who considers himself head and shoulders above the crowd but is guilty of the basest of crimes. A textbook on obsession that could well be one of the best books of the 20th century.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful
Review: Linguistically, I cannot imagine a more compelling novel. My opinion is not that of a literary expert, but I am a big fan of the art form. So with that in mind, _Lolita_ is a true masterstroke in terms of both language and plot. Any person, either gender or of any age can relate to the plight of Humbert Humbert, Dolores' debauched stepfather. On its most basic level, it is about a human being who desperately longs for another beings touch, yet cannot have it. However, I get the impression that to each person who is lucky enough to have come across this book it has its own special significance and poignancy. To some, the subject matter might be too much. After all, it is a bit grotesque to think that a 12 year old girl is the object of a grown man's obsession. Yet, the book to me is more of a statement about human love. We weren't given the ability to control who we love, and if that love is not returned, then we are left with no option beside desperate measures.

Rating:
Summary: The great American novel--truly
Review: A true masterpiece. Beautifully crafted, hilarious and unbelievably sad at the same time. It is one of two books in my 47 years that I have immediately re-read (the other being Stegner's Crossing to Safety.