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| Lolita (Penguin Classics) | 
 enlarge | Author: Vladimir Nabokov
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Category: Book
List Price: £7.99
Buy Used: £2.74
You Save: £5.25 (66%)
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Avg. Customer Rating:  25 reviews
Sales Rank: 3077
Media: Paperback
Edition: Film & TV Tie-in ed
Pages: 320
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.1 x 0.9
ISBN: 0140264078
Dewey Decimal Number: 813
EAN: 9780140264074
ASIN: 0140264078
Publication Date: April 30, 1998
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews: Read 20 more reviews...
 Not for me, sorry. September 4, 2008
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
I see that I am in a minority of one (not the first time) but "Lolita" was a struggle for me. The obvious reason not to like this book is its storyline but I think that the paedophilia aspect is tastefully done. No, my problem lies with the constant references to other classic artists, writers and philosophers which meant nothing to me. Very little happens but what does is described to ridiculous lengths. There are constant interruptions to the writing with French that I couldn't understand. I needed an Oxford English dictionary as a constant companion and felt that Nabokov really was just showing off with English not being his first language. Maybe I am not educated or intelligent enough to appreciate this book but it did very little for me.
 Masterpiece July 11, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I have read this book a number of times, and can quite happily pick it up and read a single page purely for the pure majesty of the language.
Martin Amis, son of Kingsley Amis and a stylist like Nabokov, has a true love of this book and desribed it, inter alia, as "pure sensual pleasure". A feat of genius, made more staggering by the fact that it was written in Nabokov's second language.
I challenge anyone with a love of the English language and a heart to read this book and ever forget it.
My favourite book of ALL time May 19, 2008
This is by far my most favourite book in the world ever! Words cannot describe how much I adore this book. It is true the subject matter is uncomfortable to think about especially today. Considering that English is not Nabokov's first language he writes it so beautifully that almost every page has a line which really sounds lyrical, rythmic and just plainly beautiful.
The book pulls your moral thoughts all over the place. The question; who takes advantage of who? is one which I always come back to, and like to ask the people who read it.
I have read this book about four times which I almost never do and I recommend it to everyone I read. It is, I suppose, an example of how something can be beautiful and wrong at the same time. It is also ultimately a book about love. Unrequited love, forbidden love, consuming love, manipulative love. There are so many aspects to love explored in this book.
Superlative April 30, 2008
Where to begin? One of the most moving novels in the English language - rich, lyrical, intelligent, and eloquent beyond belief. Not for fans of Raymond Carver.
A trip of three on the teeth: Lo. Lee. Ta. April 9, 2008
8 out of 9 found this review helpful
Without a doubt, one of the best books I've ever read. It's warm and funny and scary and confusing and (at times) an outright assault on everything polite society brought you up to expect. I liked it so much that the second I finished Lolita, I started right back at the beginning. I was excited... really excited (ok, maybe excited is a poorly chosen word in this case) about what I'd just read, still, I didn't want to hastily declare it one of my favorite novels. So I went back... read it again... re-read my notes and highlighted text, and added even more notes and highlights.
Here are a few random thoughts:
* It seems to be predominately women who love Lolita. I'm thinking this is half because women, by nature, are more likely to romanticize the situation and overlook the pedophiliac angle... and because I imagine very few men are comfortable in any way identifying with the subject matter.
* I agree 100% that Humbert loved Lolita, but I balk at some of the reviews claiming this to be the best love story ever written. Unrequited love? Sure. But reciprocal, healthy and mutual love... what are these people smoking??
* I find it fascinating that a small but vocal faction of women who loved the book feel the need to vilify Lolita (Dolly... Delores... Carmencita) for her cruelty to Humbert. It's almost as if - in order to love & approve of Humbert, Lolita must be the persecutor and not the victim. No consideration is given to the possibility that Lolita's circumstances formed her as a person.
* Nabokov is an extremely gifted writer. His long, complicated sentences unfold like exotic hothouse flowers. And kudos to him for taking no prisoners in the telling of a difficult tale. I mean, it took balls to write a story like this. He had to anticipate the backlash. Still, he didn't shy away or give his readers an easy out - a good reason to forgive Humbert. Yet they still did/do. That alone I admire beyond belief.
I honestly didn't feel like Nabokov glorified or sensationalized the subject of pedophilia. He just told a story and told it extremely well. I can appreciate it the same way I appreciate ultra-violent films or novels like A Clockwork Orange: they're all stories that remind us of the fine line between humanity and brutality.
The sexual aspect of Lolita is 100% repugnant, no denying that. And if Nabokov had soft-peddled that part one iota, I'd be pulling up a soapbox decrying the whole thing. Instead what he did was enable the reader to imagine... really imagine... what must go on in the head of a pedophile. He also shows us how these monsters can be (and often are) the school teachers, guidance counselors, Scout leaders, coaches and pastors. They're not all scary, toothless guys in trenchcoats offering candy to babies in parks. If nothing else, Nabokov shows us this with gusto.
Is it ugly, vulgar at times, and uncomfortable? You bet, and it should be. I'd question it if it were any other way. But it's also beautifully written and something that will stick with you long after you've finished the final page. And that's ok, too. It's possible (though extremely rare) to have both coexist in a kind of uncomfortable harmony... and, credit where it's due, Nabokov, I felt, walked that line better than just about anything else I've ever had the pleasure of reading.
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