Welcome to Litsy!

Lolita is told from the perspective of a pedophile. It makes us uncomfortably intimate with the mind of a vile criminal. We see various facets of HH & we realise that his crimes aren‘t the only trait that define him.

I hated myself for recognising the diverse aspects to HH‘s personality. My heart broke for Dolores. I hated Nobokov for not writing a character who I could easily revile. But I also admire Nobokov for not making things easy for us.

Nope. My #doublespin for November @TheAromaofBooks

I‘m only bailing for now because I have COVID and I‘m too exhausted to read a physical book. I‘ll come back to it later.

Awe and exhilaration—along with heartbreak and mordant wit—abound in Lolita, which tells the story of the aging Humbert Humbert's obsession for the nymphet Dolores Haze. Lolita is also the story of a hypercivilized European colliding with the cheerful barbarism of postwar America.

Most of all, it is a meditation on love—love as outrage and hallucination, madness and transformation.

#AboutABook #Controversial

There is a moment in Lolita where H.H. is describing an altercation between him and Lolita, and he grabs her by the wrist, hurting her, and says for that pain he causes her, he hopes his heart rots (paraphrasing).

I was driving, as I often am when I listen to audiobooks, and I had to rewind it and play the moment again. I paused it and drove in silence for a while with my thoughts. Finally, to the silence of my car I declared: Damn you, Nabokov!

March 29 #ItTakesAllKinds BkMentionedInBook This song is based on a book Lolita by Vladimir Nobokov @Eggs @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

1. Humbert Humbert from Lolita. As a first or last name it's not weird, but together it's strange.
2. Flow My Tears, The Police Man Said by Philip K. Dick. Probably one of my favorite book titles, and my fantasy rock bands name.
Thanks for the tag @Eggs #wonderouswednesday

Vladimir NABOKOV

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJNoHd3jPCA&t=1s

“Lolita“ (1997) Soundtrack by Ennio Morricone

🎶 Volendo come sottofondo alla lettura..

..e la guardai, la guardai, e seppi con chiarezza, come so di dover morire, che l'amavo più di qualunque cosa avessi mai visto o immaginato sulla terra, più di qualunque cosa avessi sperato in un altro mondo.

Capolavoro, un esplosione di emozioni, ogni pagina è un sussulto, uno struggimento, un gemito e un sospiro, uno scavo profondissimo nell‘animo del protagonista, nell‘animo di Lolita, in quello del lettore e in quello dello scrittore che, con una penna meravigliosamente ricercata ma non pretenziosa, senza voler ostentare alcuna virtù, ci avvolge nelle spire delle più fulgide sensazioni in un inno al tormento dell‘amore e dei sensi.

Un capolavoro è per sempre 💋
#lolita #nabokov #gliadelphi

#MayMontage
#SunglassesonCover
@Eggs
@Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
#sunglassandalollipop
#whocouldaskforanythingmore

lkm;kmk

#temptingtitles #withasong

So far so good. I‘ve been able to use my own tbr pile for prompts but todays prompt proved challenging so I went with a book that has the same title as a song.

The book Lolita is about Humburt, an adult man, who is sexually attracted to Lolita, a young child. The central conflict is an internal conflict within Humburt. He has to restrain his sexual desires because of societal restraints. The book is very disturbing and I found myself cringing throughout most of my time reading it.

The central conflict within this book is Humbert Humbert's attraction to Lo, a young girl. His desire for her is considered societally unacceptable and he overcomes barriers keeping them apart by seducing and marrying her mother.

Lolita is a classic, written from the perspective of a very sick man. The writing places the reader within his mind as he fantasizes about a girl child who he nicknames Lolita. It's definitely an interesting read, though sometimes sickening and difficult to follow, and I would recommend it only because of its literary value and references in other works.

Lolita is written from the perspective of a grown man with an inappropriate sexual obsession with nymphets. It is written using his stream of thought as a continuos narrative. He spends his days thinking of fantasies about a young girl whom he refers to as “Lolita.“ Although this book is very entertaining, it is very nauseating and I would not recommend it.

Characters were really well written: I really felt how disgusting Humbert's mind was but at the same time it was interesting to follow his way of thinking and see things through criminal's mind.

This was really disturbing to read but that means this was really well written.

Writing tooke a while to get to used to and I personally can't say I loved it that much.

I think this dragged at some point. The ending was again more thrilling.

Check out my full review on Goodreads or Instagram @abookdragonsretreat
Note: If you think you can read this book, then I reccomend it. If it's not for you, then definitely don't try it.

I love this book. I didn‘t know much coming into it besides it being a subject of debate regarding endorsements of immoral behavior. I think a lot of readers really lack a nuance necessary for getting what Nabokov intended from this book. It is not condoning H.H. but feels more like a cautionary tale, really making the reader question their own ethics as they read a terrible story from the perspective of a terrible person.

‘ it was love at first sight. at last sight. at ever and ever sight.‘ book i kind of hated and loved at the same time. maybe that was the intention ^ ^ 5/5

I did not like this book. I found myself skimming most of it. A middle aged predator, a 12 year old girl. No amount of fancy writing can make this palatable for me.

- and I looked and looked at her, and knew as clearly as I know I am to die, that I loved her more than anything I had ever seen or imagined in earth, or hoped for anywhere else.

I have such mixed feelings about this book. The writing was lyrical. But between the French and the round about way of making a point, I often found myself a bit confused about what I‘d just read. Did I mention that the narrator was a pedophile and rapist? Had I read this 2 or 3 decades ago, I might have enjoyed it. However in 2022 any sympathetic portrayal of a pedophile just doesn‘t fly, no matter how eloquent the writing.

Read it to develop my own opinion among the controversy. That opinion is that while it‘s well written, and by no means do I see how people think HH is glorified or that Delores was ‘promiscuous‘(she was a CHILD wtf),it was very hard to get through and outright nauseating. Do I think I could understand it more with a second read? Sure. Will I read it again? No.

Hear me out, women in the right headspace should all read Lolita, and men maybe should read it at a removed distance. Perhaps as a true crime novel. It‘s revolting and beautiful. It‘s also worthwhile to mention that Véra Nabokov played a huge role in this book‘s writing. Reading this was revolting but revolutionary. I finally acknowledged the potential for male evil in writing, and saw how beauty could so easily pervert it. A necessary read.

#LMPBC Group V - what do you think of Lolita, One Flew Over the Cuckoo‘s Nest, or To Kill a Mockingbird for a pick? Have you read all of those? I also haven‘t read any Vonnegut and would happily take suggestions, or could take an overflow from the list posted by @TheAromaofBooks …

Reading Envy Podcast Episode 243: Russian Novel Speed Date *BONUS EPISODE*

It's been a while since I've done a speed dating bonus episode, and this one is all about Russian novels for the Reading Envy Russia novel quarter. I discuss books I tried, what I thought of them, and books I read previously.

Listen and subscribe:
https://tinyurl.com/ReadingEnvy243

I started reading this book for an online book club. Regardless of the subject matter, the writing did not hook me from the onset. I‘m bailing for now. Maybe I‘ll return to this book at a later date. Maybe not.

call it a classic, i don‘t care, i just think it‘s way too icky. sure maybe the writing style is nice but it‘s impossible to enjoy this book because of how sick it is

#BookCoverChallenge
Day 161.
Here I will note 365 books (or as many as I will have before I get tired) that have shaped my taste in literature. No explanations, no reviews. Just the cover of the book.
I do not challenge anyone. You are all welcome to take part.

"Human life is but a series of footnotes to a vast obscure unfinished masterpiece."

"Life is just one small piece of light between two eternal darknesses."

A fabulous and scandalous classic literary work of art I am glad I finally read.

Starting this today for my Catching Up On The Classics Challenge.
#bookspinbingo

" and the rest is rust and stardust."

-- 4⭐️

Every time I thought about how beautifully written some lines were, I was reminded that the main character was obsessed with a 14 year old child! 🤬

Some publishers and reviewers described this novel as a ‘love‘ story. No. The villain protagonist objectifies and sexualizes girls that he deems ‘nymphets‘. He plans to drug and rape Delores on their first night alone. He is a monster and she is a victim. And yet, Nabokov masterfully takes in readers with dark humor, satire, brilliant word play and elegant, self-aware prose. From a literary standpoint it‘s an achievement.

@Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
@Eggs
#FallTreasures

Day 21 - #Waitingtoberead

🙈😅

I'm glad I've read this, it's a classic piece of Russian literature, ground breaking in its own time period and referred too a lot in modern media however I was expecting more. I think I'm a weird individual thats a bit upset that I wasn't comfortable enough reading this 🤣

I am posting one book per day from my to-be-read collection. No description and providing no reason for wanting to read it. Some will be old, some will be new - don't judge me, I have a lot of books.

Day 36th

Join the fun if you want!

#tbrpile

#QuotsyMay21 Day 28: #Hamburger

#MayCharacters @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @Eggs
Prompt: Merciless

Humbert is a horrible person. He is a sexual predator and he has no remorse.

Such a controversial book. First, it was really difficult to read after a while. It just gets confusing and I felt a little lost here and there. Second, it‘s not offensive in that our HH exposes the harm he caused. Third, it starts of funny, like for 100 pages. Then it transforms, goes dark and difficult and becomes a fascinating and pretty amazing novel. I‘m actually not quite sure what he did. This wants a reread.

4 stars

I made up a cocktail for your next Nabokov read called Lepido-Nabokov: 3oz of vodka, .5 Oz blackberry brandy and .75oz St Germain. 📚🍸 definitely helps the strange parts go down smoother and enjoy his lovely multilingual prose... but just sip slowly since it‘s definitely strong!

Finally, I‘ve started.

(and...do I see Petrarch? Just imagining that?)