Lolita
Synopsis
Nabokov's Lolita is about Humbert, a pedophilic professor who sets his sights on the twelve year-old "nymphet" Dolores Haze. Through a series of unfortunate events, Humbert becomes the adoptive father to Dolores, or "Lo" for short, and together they embark on a roadtrip across the country. He uses grooming tactics to get closer to her, and we see a shift in her emotional state as Humbert's flirtations develop into full-fledged sexual abuse. This is told through his first person perspective, so we get to experience his thoughts completely unfiltered. If you've heard of Nabokov or the infamous 1997 film adaptation, you'll know how controversial this novel is. It explores unequal power dynamics and the potential for innocent, vulnerable people to be be corrupted.
Review
I am very torn about how to rate this. On one hand, it's excellently crafted and has one of the best unreliable narrators I've ever read. Conversely, it's subject matter and description of child sexual abuse is very uncomfortable to read. It takes a skilled writer to pull in readers in the first place, but to get them to root for such a heinous person is even more impressive. This device of having the reader both like and dislike the villain is jarring and causes them think introspectively on their own morals and subconscious beliefs. Perpetrators of abuse often don't receive the punishment they deserve. I was waiting for justice to be served and to see Humbert face the consequences for his behavior, but we didn't really get that. I understand why this work was historically banned, but can also see how it came to be considered classic literature. Lo is such a fascinating character, and her curiosity and charm is magnetic, in contrast to Humbert's sadism. I think My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell filled in the gaps of what this book was trying to do. Unlike Russell's novel, Lolita doesn't get wrapped up in a tidy little bow at the end, which I suppose is how these sort of things happen in real life. Some critics might argue that Lolita promotes and appropriates sexual abuse, but I think the way we see Lo unravel psychologically over the course of the novel in such an authentic way works against that.