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Lolito
She's online.
'I booked a hotel,' I say. 'Near Marble Arch.'
'That sounds great, hon. I can't wait to see you.'
'Yeah. Me too.'
'I'm vaguely nervous.'
'Don't be.'
Do be. I'm a child.
Lolito is a love story about a fifteen year-old boy who meets a middle-aged woman on the internet.
When his long-term girlfriend and first love Alice betrays him at a house party, Etgar goes looking for cyber solace in the arms of Macy, a stunning but bored housewife he meets online. What could possibly go wrong...?
Hilarious, fearless and utterly outrageous, Lolito is a truly twenty-first century love story.
'I booked a hotel,' I say. 'Near Marble Arch.'
'That sounds great, hon. I can't wait to see you.'
'Yeah. Me too.'
'I'm vaguely nervous.'
'Don't be.'
Do be. I'm a child.
Lolito is a love story about a fifteen year-old boy who meets a middle-aged woman on the internet.
When his long-term girlfriend and first love Alice betrays him at a house party, Etgar goes looking for cyber solace in the arms of Macy, a stunning but bored housewife he meets online. What could possibly go wrong...?
Hilarious, fearless and utterly outrageous, Lolito is a truly twenty-first century love story.
288 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2013
About the author
Ben Brooks
42 books392 followersBen Brooks (born 1992 in Gloucestershire) is the author of the novels: Grow Up, Fences, An Island of Fifty, The Kasahara School of Nihilism, Upward Coast and Sadie, Lolito, Everyone Gets Eaten, and Hurra. Writing for children, he has published the Sunday Times and New York Times bestseller Stories For Boys Who Dare to Be Different, Stories For Boys Who Dare to be Different 2, Stories For Kids Who Dare to be Different, The Impossible Boy, and The Greatest Inventor. His first non-fiction book for adults, Things They Don't Want You To Know, was published by Quercus in September 2020.
He contributed the story Kimchi or a Partial List of Misappropriated Hood Ornaments to Frank Ocean's Boys Don't Cry, accompanying the release of 2016 album Blonde.
He contributed the story Kimchi or a Partial List of Misappropriated Hood Ornaments to Frank Ocean's Boys Don't Cry, accompanying the release of 2016 album Blonde.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 338 reviews
November 3, 2014
Lolito isn't as controversial, as shocking, as good or as bad as what I've heard and read about it had suggested. It's a story about a 15-year-old schoolboy who has an affair with a 42-year-old woman he meets on the internet. Kind of Tampa from the boy's angle, or - as the title suggests - a gender-swapped Lolita. However, Lolito's treatment of the subject matter is surprisingly tame. The boy in this case is Etgar, a funny and slightly strange teenager who suffers from a catalogue of anxieties. Reeling after (possibly) being cheated on by his girlfriend Alice, he poses as a twentysomething mortgage broker in an online chatroom and gets talking to Macy, who he assumes is in her mid-thirties. Etgar spends the majority of his time trying to escape from his feelings about Alice, and the story builds to a climax (no pun intended) in which Etgar and Macy agree to meet up in a London hotel.
There's something fascinating about the depiction of youth here and I suppose it's made more interesting - and 'real' - by the author's age (he's 21, and his first novel was written and published when he was in his teens ). These teenagers are a weirdly contradictory bunch who seem to act like adults but think like much younger children. Etgar is always wanting to hide under his duvet and isn't embarrassed about admitting he loves Disney films and chick flicks, plus most of his sexual fantasies seem to revolve around cuddling and motherly behaviour; yet he and Alice regularly watch violent snuff movies with the sort of bored casual interest that most of us reserve for adverts. The narrator and his friends seem so comfortable with sex and drugs you'd assume they've been familiar with them for many years (Alice has had two abortions already, and she's a year younger than Etgar), but their language and comprehension are stunted. Etgar talks about 'sexing' girls, never 'having sex', refers to the world beyond his house as 'the Outside', and ties himself in knots over Alice's 'betrayal' despite the fact that he regularly fools around with a female friend. He doesn't seem to see the contradiction here, and not because he's a typical Lad who thinks cheating is okay for a guy but not for a girl: his understanding genuinely doesn't seem to allow for that sort of complexity. This childishness is typical of all the teenage characters, but particularly Etgar, although he's also an intelligent, eccentric and humorous narrator.
While the general concept of 'the internet' is still often used as a gimmick in fiction and many authors haven't yet progressed beyond portraying it as some weird, unknown land, here a constant stream of digital white noise - from Facebook feeds and Google search histories to disturbing YouTube videos and porn - highlights how the teenagers' 'real' lives are inextricably linked with their online existence. As well as meeting Macy in a chatroom, Etgar receives confirmation of Alice's infidelity by hacking into her Facebook and messaging her best friend. Inane status updates merge with graphic porn video titles, as if to suggest the characters don't really distinguish between the two.
True to the immature mindset of its protagonist, Lolito doesn't really make any attempt to examine the motives and/or intentions of its characters. It remains unclear whether Macy is aware of Etgar's real age before coming to London, for example, and she certainly isn't portrayed as a predatory character. What you end up with is a sort of twisted coming-of-age story in which Etgar's 'relationship' with Macy is almost an incidental detail. We see everything through his eyes, and he's far more concerned with losing Alice: the chapters are punctuated by poems he's written about her, which veer from juvenile name-calling to desperate admissions of love. Although Etgar and Macy do have sex, it's barely described and isn't actually central to the interaction between them - in fact, it almost seems like an afterthought.
There are some issues here I would have preferred to be explored in more detail, something Etgar's limited understanding prevents. I felt it was strongly implied that Macy didn't and couldn't have children, despite claiming she did have them, and this was an intriguing plot thread which was never picked up. The same could be said of Macy's - this initially seemed a bit like a lazy plot device to justify Macy's actions, but the later scenes involving shed a different light on matters, and possibly bring Macy's honesty into question. (Interestingly enough for a novel that's essentially about paedophilia, this was the darkest thing about the story for me.) The fact that Macy turns out, in reality, to be a also raises some interesting questions about her intentions and - if indeed she wasn't already aware of Etgar's age - what made her continue with the liaison once she met him. I was very interested in Macy and it would have been good to see some of this story from her perspective, or an outsider's point of view, but it says a lot about Lolito that that's very much not the point.
I'm fascinated by books written by inexperienced authors, which is why I really love reading first novels: and although Brooks has already notched up an impressive oeuvre, he's still very young and that shows in his writing. Lolito has echoes of The Juliette Society, the debut novel of ex-porn star Sasha Grey, in that it touches on some incredibly interesting, insightful, even brilliant subjects and ideas, but lags and trips up at various points and fails to capitalise on its potential, making it just average as a whole. I loved the author's spot-on depiction of the combination of boredom, ennui and innocence that characterises the state of being a teenager, and it's this - not the patchy plot - that has left me with a degree of curiosity about his other work. This may not be a brilliant book, but Ben Brooks is definitely one to watch.
There's something fascinating about the depiction of youth here and I suppose it's made more interesting - and 'real' - by the author's age (he's 21, and his first novel was written and published when he was in his teens ). These teenagers are a weirdly contradictory bunch who seem to act like adults but think like much younger children. Etgar is always wanting to hide under his duvet and isn't embarrassed about admitting he loves Disney films and chick flicks, plus most of his sexual fantasies seem to revolve around cuddling and motherly behaviour; yet he and Alice regularly watch violent snuff movies with the sort of bored casual interest that most of us reserve for adverts. The narrator and his friends seem so comfortable with sex and drugs you'd assume they've been familiar with them for many years (Alice has had two abortions already, and she's a year younger than Etgar), but their language and comprehension are stunted. Etgar talks about 'sexing' girls, never 'having sex', refers to the world beyond his house as 'the Outside', and ties himself in knots over Alice's 'betrayal' despite the fact that he regularly fools around with a female friend. He doesn't seem to see the contradiction here, and not because he's a typical Lad who thinks cheating is okay for a guy but not for a girl: his understanding genuinely doesn't seem to allow for that sort of complexity. This childishness is typical of all the teenage characters, but particularly Etgar, although he's also an intelligent, eccentric and humorous narrator.
While the general concept of 'the internet' is still often used as a gimmick in fiction and many authors haven't yet progressed beyond portraying it as some weird, unknown land, here a constant stream of digital white noise - from Facebook feeds and Google search histories to disturbing YouTube videos and porn - highlights how the teenagers' 'real' lives are inextricably linked with their online existence. As well as meeting Macy in a chatroom, Etgar receives confirmation of Alice's infidelity by hacking into her Facebook and messaging her best friend. Inane status updates merge with graphic porn video titles, as if to suggest the characters don't really distinguish between the two.
True to the immature mindset of its protagonist, Lolito doesn't really make any attempt to examine the motives and/or intentions of its characters. It remains unclear whether Macy is aware of Etgar's real age before coming to London, for example, and she certainly isn't portrayed as a predatory character. What you end up with is a sort of twisted coming-of-age story in which Etgar's 'relationship' with Macy is almost an incidental detail. We see everything through his eyes, and he's far more concerned with losing Alice: the chapters are punctuated by poems he's written about her, which veer from juvenile name-calling to desperate admissions of love. Although Etgar and Macy do have sex, it's barely described and isn't actually central to the interaction between them - in fact, it almost seems like an afterthought.
There are some issues here I would have preferred to be explored in more detail, something Etgar's limited understanding prevents. I felt it was strongly implied that Macy didn't and couldn't have children, despite claiming she did have them, and this was an intriguing plot thread which was never picked up. The same could be said of Macy's - this initially seemed a bit like a lazy plot device to justify Macy's actions, but the later scenes involving shed a different light on matters, and possibly bring Macy's honesty into question. (Interestingly enough for a novel that's essentially about paedophilia, this was the darkest thing about the story for me.) The fact that Macy turns out, in reality, to be a also raises some interesting questions about her intentions and - if indeed she wasn't already aware of Etgar's age - what made her continue with the liaison once she met him. I was very interested in Macy and it would have been good to see some of this story from her perspective, or an outsider's point of view, but it says a lot about Lolito that that's very much not the point.
I'm fascinated by books written by inexperienced authors, which is why I really love reading first novels: and although Brooks has already notched up an impressive oeuvre, he's still very young and that shows in his writing. Lolito has echoes of The Juliette Society, the debut novel of ex-porn star Sasha Grey, in that it touches on some incredibly interesting, insightful, even brilliant subjects and ideas, but lags and trips up at various points and fails to capitalise on its potential, making it just average as a whole. I loved the author's spot-on depiction of the combination of boredom, ennui and innocence that characterises the state of being a teenager, and it's this - not the patchy plot - that has left me with a degree of curiosity about his other work. This may not be a brilliant book, but Ben Brooks is definitely one to watch.
May 8, 2018
Mi sono sempre chiesto perché l'Indice dei libri proibiti sia stato abolito, quando esistono libri come questo che meriterebbero di essere in cima alla lista.
D'accordo, potevo risparmiarmi la lettura di questa ciofeca e non è che mi aspettassi un capolavoro o un'opera anche lontanamente mediocre, ma questa è una delle cose che facciamo per puro gusto masochista, come guardare Breaking Dawn e Real Time per farsi quattro risate.
Il libro, apparentemente pubblicato l'anno scorso, sembra tutto fuorché ambientato nel 2013. Etgar infatti, il protagonista, si deprime ascoltando Vanessa Carlton(!), crede che le scarpe Nike bianche siano fighe e ha un'amica che guarda Titanic ogni 3 giorni perché "le fornisce un buon punto di vista sulle cose". Devo continuare?
Per più di metà libro non succede assolutamente nulla. Etgar è depresso perché la ragazza l'ha tradito e allora ci descrive nel dettaglio ogni singolo programma che guarda in tv e le chat erotiche con una quarantenne.
Ma che importa della trama e dei personaggi quando abbiamo delle poetiche metafore che ti colpiscono dritto al cuore, come "Dietro agli occhi ha dei cani tristi".
La cosa che mi turba profondamente è che questo ragazzo-scrittore sia stato definito dalla critica "uno dei narratori più interessanti della generazione under 30".
D'accordo, potevo risparmiarmi la lettura di questa ciofeca e non è che mi aspettassi un capolavoro o un'opera anche lontanamente mediocre, ma questa è una delle cose che facciamo per puro gusto masochista, come guardare Breaking Dawn e Real Time per farsi quattro risate.
Il libro, apparentemente pubblicato l'anno scorso, sembra tutto fuorché ambientato nel 2013. Etgar infatti, il protagonista, si deprime ascoltando Vanessa Carlton(!), crede che le scarpe Nike bianche siano fighe e ha un'amica che guarda Titanic ogni 3 giorni perché "le fornisce un buon punto di vista sulle cose". Devo continuare?
Per più di metà libro non succede assolutamente nulla. Etgar è depresso perché la ragazza l'ha tradito e allora ci descrive nel dettaglio ogni singolo programma che guarda in tv e le chat erotiche con una quarantenne.
Ma che importa della trama e dei personaggi quando abbiamo delle poetiche metafore che ti colpiscono dritto al cuore, come "Dietro agli occhi ha dei cani tristi".
La cosa che mi turba profondamente è che questo ragazzo-scrittore sia stato definito dalla critica "uno dei narratori più interessanti della generazione under 30".
March 19, 2016
3,5 / 5
"Lolito" ha sido, como esperaba, una historia que resultaría no ser como esperaba. No sé si habéis entendido lo que he querido decir; esta historia tiene su propia forma de sorprenderte: si piensas que va a ir por algún sitio en concreto, es bastante probable que te equivoques. Ben Brooks deja que la novela crezca por sí sola, como el propio protagonista, Etgar, quien no consigue asimilar que su novia le haya engañado con otro chico.
Si hay algo que destacaría sobre todos los puntos positivos que abundan en "Lolito", sería el lenguaje, pues está dotado de una naturalidad que hace que los pensamientos del protagonista sean (de verdad) los propios de un adolescente de quince años. El autor no se anda con florituras: es crudo, realista y posee un dominio del humor negro increíble.
Además de esto, he de decir que esta novela contiene algunas de las escenas que más me han impresionado leer dentro del género young adult debido al tipo de contenido que encontramos en ellas. Sin embargo, pienso que la resolución del conflicto es algo escueta. La conclusión me ha gustado, pero sinceramente creo que faltaba algo más que esas últimas dos páginas del capítulo 46.
"Lolito" es altamente recomendable: es diferente, divertidísima, rebelde y llena de furia. Ben Brooks tiene un estilo completamente único y creo que es lo que más he valorado (y disfrutado) mientras la leía. Sin duda, le daré una oportunidad al resto de su trabajo.
-Cita favorita: "Sometimes I sleep. Sometimes there's Alice."
"Lolito" ha sido, como esperaba, una historia que resultaría no ser como esperaba. No sé si habéis entendido lo que he querido decir; esta historia tiene su propia forma de sorprenderte: si piensas que va a ir por algún sitio en concreto, es bastante probable que te equivoques. Ben Brooks deja que la novela crezca por sí sola, como el propio protagonista, Etgar, quien no consigue asimilar que su novia le haya engañado con otro chico.
Si hay algo que destacaría sobre todos los puntos positivos que abundan en "Lolito", sería el lenguaje, pues está dotado de una naturalidad que hace que los pensamientos del protagonista sean (de verdad) los propios de un adolescente de quince años. El autor no se anda con florituras: es crudo, realista y posee un dominio del humor negro increíble.
Además de esto, he de decir que esta novela contiene algunas de las escenas que más me han impresionado leer dentro del género young adult debido al tipo de contenido que encontramos en ellas. Sin embargo, pienso que la resolución del conflicto es algo escueta. La conclusión me ha gustado, pero sinceramente creo que faltaba algo más que esas últimas dos páginas del capítulo 46.
"Lolito" es altamente recomendable: es diferente, divertidísima, rebelde y llena de furia. Ben Brooks tiene un estilo completamente único y creo que es lo que más he valorado (y disfrutado) mientras la leía. Sin duda, le daré una oportunidad al resto de su trabajo.
-Cita favorita: "Sometimes I sleep. Sometimes there's Alice."
April 27, 2014
Quizá es que me hago mayor, pero me ha costado mucho trabajo entender las motivaciones de los protagonistas. Lolito comparte rasgos con otras novelas como 'Las ventajas de ser un marginado' o 'Eleanor & Park ', aunque estas últimas estén definitivamente mejor escritas. Lolito podría haber sido una estupenda novela, y de hecho, cuenta con unas cuantas virtudes (algunas de las reflexiones del protagonista son muy ocurrentes), pero creo que lo estropea todo el empeño del autor por ser controvertido (de verdad los chavales de 15 años actúan como los del libro??), y esto consigue que veas a sus personajes como si fueran de mentira , planos e inverosímiles. Una pena.
May 16, 2014
I was hooked.
I read it in a day.
It was really funny but when I reached the end I was left
thinking - Was that it?
I had read the whole book, enjoyed the majority but by the end I was left
unsatisfied and disappointed. The story seemed to speed up pretty quick
and then suddenly end.
It's as if the fast forward button had been lodged and Brooks was eager to finish it.
This being said it wasn't a bad read.
It's funny, it's witty and entertaining.
I read it in a day.
It was really funny but when I reached the end I was left
thinking - Was that it?
I had read the whole book, enjoyed the majority but by the end I was left
unsatisfied and disappointed. The story seemed to speed up pretty quick
and then suddenly end.
It's as if the fast forward button had been lodged and Brooks was eager to finish it.
This being said it wasn't a bad read.
It's funny, it's witty and entertaining.
December 5, 2017
15 yaşında bir ergen olsaydım kesinlikle beğeneceğim bir kitap olurdu. Konu itibari ile ilgimi çekmişti ama okurken içim sıkıldı. Demek ki neymiş konuya ve kapağa aldanıp her önümüze gelen kitabı almıyormuşuz.. -_-
September 22, 2014
I've just finished this and I have to say I absolutely loved it.
I find Brooks' talent to write as a teen not obvious but impressive; I found Grow Up and it's protagonist's voice unsettling until I looked at the back page and realised just why it was so juvenile but yet perfect (I was also fairly pissed off that Brooks is younger than me and published, but don't we all?).
This book made me laugh aloud on numerous occasions which is a feat. I also genuinely cared about Etgar and the end of the story.
That's all effectively all I can say; I thought it was fantastic. Not as shocking as the cover blurb and other reviews suggest, although genuinely brilliant.
I find Brooks' talent to write as a teen not obvious but impressive; I found Grow Up and it's protagonist's voice unsettling until I looked at the back page and realised just why it was so juvenile but yet perfect (I was also fairly pissed off that Brooks is younger than me and published, but don't we all?).
This book made me laugh aloud on numerous occasions which is a feat. I also genuinely cared about Etgar and the end of the story.
That's all effectively all I can say; I thought it was fantastic. Not as shocking as the cover blurb and other reviews suggest, although genuinely brilliant.
October 10, 2013
When I got the book, I was totally excited and had to read it immediately. And it was worth it. Honestly, 'Lolito' is an epic book written by an awesome writer. Honest? Yes. Shocking? Definitely. Funny? Of couse!
When 15-year-old Etgar finds out that his girlfriend betrayed him and lied to him, he trys to find diversion and signs in an adult chatroom and begins to chat with Macy, a middle-aged housewife.
Etgar, being totally screwed up, lonely, finds concolation in this and starts to build up kind of a relationship with Macy, including cyber sex and even a real life meeting.
This book blow me over, seriously. Etgar is an absolutely fascination character, who goes through a lot of emotions during the story. That makes him even more interesting, looking at the fact, that this books is also concentrating on our generation.
However, Etgar is not some mainstream boy you meet on the street, he is more than that, more thoughtful and definitely more multilayred. On the one hand, he does what boys his age do: going to Facebook, thinking about girls and sex, having first drinking experiences. But on the other hand, he doesn't like partys and many people, he gets uncomfortable, when he is comfronted with exercises that include talking to strangers and a bit courage, making him seem like a pretty insecure teenager.
I do not think, that he is a good example for what teenagers his age do in general, but his life and the stuff he sees, notices and thinks about are.
His insecurity continues, when he meets Mace. For example, he excuses for nearly everything. However, there are a few things that stay a bit unclear, especially about Macy. You don't get to know, if she really didn't know about Etgars age before meeting him and it is kind of vague what happens afterr they met.
You know, that she doesn't go to prison, but there is no talk or communication between her and Etgar, which makes you feel a bit confused about whether it is over now or not.
But that doesn't make it less funny or fascinating. The way Brooks mangaged it to show how teenagers sometimes act, speak and think is still unbelievable. Sometimes Etgar thought about stuff, I never thought about. And then again it was shocking, but totally funny. If you read it, pay also attention to the way Etgar and his friends speak. There is this epic line on page 273 where Aslam says "People are such dicks," (...) "People can fuck off." God, I love that quote.
All in all I think that 'Lolito' is an amazing book and definitely worth reading. It is funny and fascinating and once you begun with it, you can't stop.
When 15-year-old Etgar finds out that his girlfriend betrayed him and lied to him, he trys to find diversion and signs in an adult chatroom and begins to chat with Macy, a middle-aged housewife.
Etgar, being totally screwed up, lonely, finds concolation in this and starts to build up kind of a relationship with Macy, including cyber sex and even a real life meeting.
This book blow me over, seriously. Etgar is an absolutely fascination character, who goes through a lot of emotions during the story. That makes him even more interesting, looking at the fact, that this books is also concentrating on our generation.
However, Etgar is not some mainstream boy you meet on the street, he is more than that, more thoughtful and definitely more multilayred. On the one hand, he does what boys his age do: going to Facebook, thinking about girls and sex, having first drinking experiences. But on the other hand, he doesn't like partys and many people, he gets uncomfortable, when he is comfronted with exercises that include talking to strangers and a bit courage, making him seem like a pretty insecure teenager.
I do not think, that he is a good example for what teenagers his age do in general, but his life and the stuff he sees, notices and thinks about are.
His insecurity continues, when he meets Mace. For example, he excuses for nearly everything. However, there are a few things that stay a bit unclear, especially about Macy. You don't get to know, if she really didn't know about Etgars age before meeting him and it is kind of vague what happens afterr they met.
You know, that she doesn't go to prison, but there is no talk or communication between her and Etgar, which makes you feel a bit confused about whether it is over now or not.
But that doesn't make it less funny or fascinating. The way Brooks mangaged it to show how teenagers sometimes act, speak and think is still unbelievable. Sometimes Etgar thought about stuff, I never thought about. And then again it was shocking, but totally funny. If you read it, pay also attention to the way Etgar and his friends speak. There is this epic line on page 273 where Aslam says "People are such dicks," (...) "People can fuck off." God, I love that quote.
All in all I think that 'Lolito' is an amazing book and definitely worth reading. It is funny and fascinating and once you begun with it, you can't stop.
May 16, 2016
Me estreno con Ben Brooks y tengo decir que tanto las expectativas como la realidad ha sido muy positivas. El autor sabe tratar el tema de la pedofilia de una manera muy peculiar pero a la vez muy elegante. Toques de humor negro imprescindibles en esta novela que nos habla del paso de la niñez a ser adultos y el redescubrimiento de uno mismo. Os aseguro, yo vuelvo a repetir con Ben Brooks sin dudarlo.
July 16, 2017
The main problem with this book is that the most interesting part (and with "Lolito" as a title it's something you don't expect to be a problem) is barely deIivered, meaning the love affair. I liked the chats and the two of them hanging out. I disliked that 3/4 of the book feels like pure filling for that.
May 21, 2017
From the first rape joke I was grossed out and then it never really got any better.
May 15, 2016
Diferente a lo que suelo leer.
No es un libro que recomiende a todos.
Quiero leer más del autor.
Dejaré que pasen unos días para escribirle o grabarle una reseña.
Pronto les contaré más. :)
No es un libro que recomiende a todos.
Quiero leer más del autor.
Dejaré que pasen unos días para escribirle o grabarle una reseña.
Pronto les contaré más. :)
July 17, 2014
Grata sorpresa. Me daba un poco de miedo la lectura porque para qué engañaros, el tema es un charco muy serio. Pero me ha parecido una novela muy divertida, ágil, ácida y sobre todo, el autor capta muy muy bien la voz de un adolescente y cómo se interiorizan y se responden ante multitud de cambios a esa edad. Además, te deja una ventanita abierta para que pienses cómo respondemos ante estas "ovejas negras" como sociedad. Y repito, es muy divertido.
Si crees que se ha pasado, que los chavales no hablan así ni hacen esas cosas, que tiene solo quince años... me parece que solo hay que poner la oreja en la calle. A mí me ha parecido un libro juvenil bastante real y digo juvenil porque aunque haga falta algo de madurez para salirse del morbo y ver lo importante (solo es un chaval perdido del que se aprovecha gente también perdida, pero que sí que sabe lo que hace), creo que está muy cerca de esa cosa que llamamos YA/joven adulto.
Si crees que se ha pasado, que los chavales no hablan así ni hacen esas cosas, que tiene solo quince años... me parece que solo hay que poner la oreja en la calle. A mí me ha parecido un libro juvenil bastante real y digo juvenil porque aunque haga falta algo de madurez para salirse del morbo y ver lo importante (solo es un chaval perdido del que se aprovecha gente también perdida, pero que sí que sabe lo que hace), creo que está muy cerca de esa cosa que llamamos YA/joven adulto.
February 3, 2017
The book description seemed intriguing. However, I was disappointed by the content. The love story everyone is expecting only begins at 2/3 of the book, and the rest of the book is a repetitive description of the protagonist's life, which is mundane. Not recommended for anyone who is expecting something close to Lolita. The writing style is kind of trashy, too.
September 4, 2017
Divertidísimo y lleno de situaciones y frases absurdamente geniales. A destacar las "poesías" que encabezan cada capítulo. Es una lástima que la trama no se desarrolle tanto como me gustaría, me ha dado la impresión de que aún quedaba mucho que contar. Sin duda ahora toca lanzarse a por los demás de Ben Brooks.
August 23, 2013
Following the recent conviction of teacher Jeremy Forrest for sexual offences and the abduction of one of his pupils, there has been much debate over the value we place on the choices made by teenagers. In the Guardian, Zoe Williams argued that ‘the laws around consent put the onus on the adult to take responsible decisions, and reject the viewpoint of the child entirely – this is how it has to be.’ Yet the same paper also carried an article from a woman who had had an affair with her teacher, saying ‘I was not damaged by the experience, and have thrilling memories of the excitement of a relationship with an older intelligent man who inspired my love of literature.’ Ben Brooks’s new novel Lolito covers similar territory, centering on the relationship between Etgar, a 15 year old boy, and Macy, an older woman he meets online, humanising the characters and trying to understand the circumstances which brought them together. Whereas the media coverage of the Forrest case featured middle-aged columnists arguing over about whether the pupil’s voice should be heard, Lolito’s first-person narrative puts that voice in the foreground
Brooks himself is alarmingly precocious – born in 1992, this is his fifth novel – but Lolito isn’t just youthful showing off. The subject is shocking, and the early sections depict Skins-esque levels of hedonism (like Tao Lin’s recent novel Taipei, the main character’s alcohol and drugs consumption borders on the ridiculous), but there is also a lot of heart in the writing. The narrator, Etgar, is a young 15, and his connection with the adult world is slim. He sees the news as a series of disconnected events presided over by ‘the bald man’ ('Someone died today, and a hurricane happened. The Banks did something. Someone sexed someone else'), whilst at times of stress, he retreats to watching Disney films and animal documentaries. He drinks a lot at house parties, but the world of clubbing is remote – 'Once, me, Alice and Aslan got into Diva with fake IDs'. While his friends occasionally use technical terms like ‘intervention’, most of the language around sex is childish. His world is disturbed when his girlfriend Alice cheats on him. There is some debate about whether she was ‘raped with kisses’ or willingly ‘handjobbed’ someone, a matter of the highest importance for Etgar.
In response to this betrayal, Etgar takes refuge in adult chat rooms. Throughout Lolito, Brooks looks at locations where normal rules are suspended. The action takes place during the summer holidays, whilst Etgar’s parents are away in Russia, meaning that he is free to raid the drinks cabinet and roam around without hindrance, and the chat room is an extension of this. Rather than being sleazy, the conversation is harmless, childlike: ‘if people laughed & smiled that much in real life then real life would be markedly more bearable.’
Through the chat room, Etgar begins talking to Macy, who tells him she is a businesswoman from Scotland. Trying to make an impression, Etgar claims to be a mortgage broker. The pretence is never really believable ('it's mortgage breaking season. Everyone wants their mortgages broken this time of year'), and becomes even less sustainable when they agree to meet. Their first date is full of cringe-inducing comedy as Etgar spills wine and sticks his finger up Macy's nose. Later, Etgar and Macy’s relationship takes shape in a gay club, a venue long associated with the clandestine and carnivalesque, before being concluded in another transitory space, this time a London hotel room.
When they consummate their relationship, Macy is aware of each Etgar's age ('I'm not stupid. I know'). Macy reveals that she is 46 and that she has two children, and shows Etgar the bruises inflicted on her by her husband. She is not entirely honest, however, telling him that she is a housewife, rather than revealing her true occupation. She accepts Etgar’s age, and decides to stay. Before they have sex, they talk, confide in each other, hide under the covers in their hotel room, making up stories and collages, reinforcing Etgar’s childishness.
Brooks does not explicitly explore his characters’ motivations, or seek to explain their actions. Etgar’s narrative treats sex casually. He refers to Alice's two abortions, and regularly references online porn and snuff movies. This doesn't seem to be the key to his behaviour though. Instead, is emotionally confused by the ending of his relationship, lacking effective guidance ('Dad stands up and walks through to the toilet. He doesn't like to watch when me and Mum talk about emotions'), and sees the affair with Macy as an adventure. He doesn't seem traumatised by what happened – he is loyal to Macy, and the intrusion of the press and the police into his world seems to cause more emotional damage than anything that happened online or in the hotel room.
Macy’s situation is more complicated. Brooks seems to suggest that she has been somehow infantilised by her abusive husband, but Etgar is not intuitive enough to fully understand her. Maybe she is seeking a partner she can dominate, or simply one who seems innocent, doesn't pose a physical threat. Ultimately, she is presented as having the most to lose through her actions. Inevitably, Macy will be compared to Humbert Humbert, and to Celeste Price, the central figure in Alissa Nutting's controversial new novel Tampa. There are significant differences in her characterisation, however. Macy doesn't display Humbert's verbosity or vainglory, and nor are her actions portrayed with the pornographic sensibility of Celeste's. Instead, she is seen as someone looking for an emotional crutch, and the way she speaks to Etgar is motherly, even pretending to be his mother when they go for tattoos - she is acting in loco parentis in a very different way to Nutting's character .
Resisting the urge to sensationalise, Brooks looks beneath the surface of the relationship to focus on the emotions of the characters. Etgar is no stud (at one point referring to his dream of sex lasting longer than a TV ad break) - the sex that they have is only a very minor part of his narrative, which is far more concerned with the time they spend talking. In some ways this highlights the immaturity of Etgar, who doesn't possess the language to effectively describe what they do, but it is also an opportunity for Brooks to contrast this attitude with that of the police, who are simply concerned with who touched who, and who was exploited.
In terms of style, Brooks’s writing has much in common with the likes of Tao Lin, full of short sentences and media references: ‘'I stare at my feet. I watch a video of a severely disabled person covering a Katy Perry song. I run a bath.' At one point, he even introduces characters by describing their online search topics ('I imagine her recent search history goes: how to make a ouija board, does anal hurt, Haruki Murakami'), although he doesn’t persist with this interesting idea. The main difference comes in a relative lightness of tone; if Taipei was dense and somewhat jaded, Lolito is uncynical, written with a lot of energy, and a generally positive worldview. There are some good comic scenes, including Etgar and his father accidentally going dogging, and the supporting characters are well-drawn.
Brooks’s decision to explore the emotional background of taboo relationships like this is bound to generate controversy, especially as the text doesn’t explicitly condemn Macy. Instead of presenting her as predatory, there is more a sense that the characters have come together by chance. Whether this is just naivety on Etgar’s part is for the reader to decide. This is one area where Lolito disappoints - a little extra time on the aftermath of the affair would have benefitted the book, which feels a little rushed as it stands. Overall though, it is an interesting, provocative and surprisingly heartfelt read, which I enjoyed far more than I was expecting to.
Brooks himself is alarmingly precocious – born in 1992, this is his fifth novel – but Lolito isn’t just youthful showing off. The subject is shocking, and the early sections depict Skins-esque levels of hedonism (like Tao Lin’s recent novel Taipei, the main character’s alcohol and drugs consumption borders on the ridiculous), but there is also a lot of heart in the writing. The narrator, Etgar, is a young 15, and his connection with the adult world is slim. He sees the news as a series of disconnected events presided over by ‘the bald man’ ('Someone died today, and a hurricane happened. The Banks did something. Someone sexed someone else'), whilst at times of stress, he retreats to watching Disney films and animal documentaries. He drinks a lot at house parties, but the world of clubbing is remote – 'Once, me, Alice and Aslan got into Diva with fake IDs'. While his friends occasionally use technical terms like ‘intervention’, most of the language around sex is childish. His world is disturbed when his girlfriend Alice cheats on him. There is some debate about whether she was ‘raped with kisses’ or willingly ‘handjobbed’ someone, a matter of the highest importance for Etgar.
In response to this betrayal, Etgar takes refuge in adult chat rooms. Throughout Lolito, Brooks looks at locations where normal rules are suspended. The action takes place during the summer holidays, whilst Etgar’s parents are away in Russia, meaning that he is free to raid the drinks cabinet and roam around without hindrance, and the chat room is an extension of this. Rather than being sleazy, the conversation is harmless, childlike: ‘if people laughed & smiled that much in real life then real life would be markedly more bearable.’
Through the chat room, Etgar begins talking to Macy, who tells him she is a businesswoman from Scotland. Trying to make an impression, Etgar claims to be a mortgage broker. The pretence is never really believable ('it's mortgage breaking season. Everyone wants their mortgages broken this time of year'), and becomes even less sustainable when they agree to meet. Their first date is full of cringe-inducing comedy as Etgar spills wine and sticks his finger up Macy's nose. Later, Etgar and Macy’s relationship takes shape in a gay club, a venue long associated with the clandestine and carnivalesque, before being concluded in another transitory space, this time a London hotel room.
When they consummate their relationship, Macy is aware of each Etgar's age ('I'm not stupid. I know'). Macy reveals that she is 46 and that she has two children, and shows Etgar the bruises inflicted on her by her husband. She is not entirely honest, however, telling him that she is a housewife, rather than revealing her true occupation. She accepts Etgar’s age, and decides to stay. Before they have sex, they talk, confide in each other, hide under the covers in their hotel room, making up stories and collages, reinforcing Etgar’s childishness.
Brooks does not explicitly explore his characters’ motivations, or seek to explain their actions. Etgar’s narrative treats sex casually. He refers to Alice's two abortions, and regularly references online porn and snuff movies. This doesn't seem to be the key to his behaviour though. Instead, is emotionally confused by the ending of his relationship, lacking effective guidance ('Dad stands up and walks through to the toilet. He doesn't like to watch when me and Mum talk about emotions'), and sees the affair with Macy as an adventure. He doesn't seem traumatised by what happened – he is loyal to Macy, and the intrusion of the press and the police into his world seems to cause more emotional damage than anything that happened online or in the hotel room.
Macy’s situation is more complicated. Brooks seems to suggest that she has been somehow infantilised by her abusive husband, but Etgar is not intuitive enough to fully understand her. Maybe she is seeking a partner she can dominate, or simply one who seems innocent, doesn't pose a physical threat. Ultimately, she is presented as having the most to lose through her actions. Inevitably, Macy will be compared to Humbert Humbert, and to Celeste Price, the central figure in Alissa Nutting's controversial new novel Tampa. There are significant differences in her characterisation, however. Macy doesn't display Humbert's verbosity or vainglory, and nor are her actions portrayed with the pornographic sensibility of Celeste's. Instead, she is seen as someone looking for an emotional crutch, and the way she speaks to Etgar is motherly, even pretending to be his mother when they go for tattoos - she is acting in loco parentis in a very different way to Nutting's character .
Resisting the urge to sensationalise, Brooks looks beneath the surface of the relationship to focus on the emotions of the characters. Etgar is no stud (at one point referring to his dream of sex lasting longer than a TV ad break) - the sex that they have is only a very minor part of his narrative, which is far more concerned with the time they spend talking. In some ways this highlights the immaturity of Etgar, who doesn't possess the language to effectively describe what they do, but it is also an opportunity for Brooks to contrast this attitude with that of the police, who are simply concerned with who touched who, and who was exploited.
In terms of style, Brooks’s writing has much in common with the likes of Tao Lin, full of short sentences and media references: ‘'I stare at my feet. I watch a video of a severely disabled person covering a Katy Perry song. I run a bath.' At one point, he even introduces characters by describing their online search topics ('I imagine her recent search history goes: how to make a ouija board, does anal hurt, Haruki Murakami'), although he doesn’t persist with this interesting idea. The main difference comes in a relative lightness of tone; if Taipei was dense and somewhat jaded, Lolito is uncynical, written with a lot of energy, and a generally positive worldview. There are some good comic scenes, including Etgar and his father accidentally going dogging, and the supporting characters are well-drawn.
Brooks’s decision to explore the emotional background of taboo relationships like this is bound to generate controversy, especially as the text doesn’t explicitly condemn Macy. Instead of presenting her as predatory, there is more a sense that the characters have come together by chance. Whether this is just naivety on Etgar’s part is for the reader to decide. This is one area where Lolito disappoints - a little extra time on the aftermath of the affair would have benefitted the book, which feels a little rushed as it stands. Overall though, it is an interesting, provocative and surprisingly heartfelt read, which I enjoyed far more than I was expecting to.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 2, 2021
No entiendo el porque de tanta fama. Esta bien sin mas. Intenta meter conceptos controvertidos pero se queda bastante a medias y no entiendo la comparación con " El guardian entre el centeno " que está a añoz luz.
August 29, 2013
I feel I don't read enough contemporary fiction so I picked up this book, published just a few months ago, by the young author Ben Brooks. What I found was a mixed bag.
As the title suggests, Lolito is about an underaged teen who gets into a relationship with an older woman. Etgar is 15, totally screwed up, suffers panic attacks, and already a binge drinker. When his girlfriend cheats on him he tips over the edge. In his loneliness he starts chatting to strangers on the Internet and ends up in a liaison with a 49 year-old mother and teacher.
Etgar's emotional rollercoaster is vividly drawn but it's hard to sympathize with him because he doesn't seem real. The author's MFA style of overwriting makes Etgar sounds like a literary construction, with phrases like "shops the colour of old fax machines" and "eyes like glasses of red wine." Does a 15 year-old talk like that? Does ANYONE talk like that? Certainly not a teenager who spends most of his time drunk in front of the television.
Also, the narrative gets a bit unbelievable. Etgar's fake ID works without question everywhere, even in posh hotels, and there's an unrealistic scene where he's being questioned by the police and they let him run away without even trying to stop him.
What really frustrated me about this novel is that I feel the author could do much better. Some passages are excellent, the minor characters are well drawn, and the concept has loads of potential, especially with "cougars" being so trendy now. Brooks is an author to watch, but I think he might need a few years for his style to mature.
As the title suggests, Lolito is about an underaged teen who gets into a relationship with an older woman. Etgar is 15, totally screwed up, suffers panic attacks, and already a binge drinker. When his girlfriend cheats on him he tips over the edge. In his loneliness he starts chatting to strangers on the Internet and ends up in a liaison with a 49 year-old mother and teacher.
Etgar's emotional rollercoaster is vividly drawn but it's hard to sympathize with him because he doesn't seem real. The author's MFA style of overwriting makes Etgar sounds like a literary construction, with phrases like "shops the colour of old fax machines" and "eyes like glasses of red wine." Does a 15 year-old talk like that? Does ANYONE talk like that? Certainly not a teenager who spends most of his time drunk in front of the television.
Also, the narrative gets a bit unbelievable. Etgar's fake ID works without question everywhere, even in posh hotels, and there's an unrealistic scene where he's being questioned by the police and they let him run away without even trying to stop him.
What really frustrated me about this novel is that I feel the author could do much better. Some passages are excellent, the minor characters are well drawn, and the concept has loads of potential, especially with "cougars" being so trendy now. Brooks is an author to watch, but I think he might need a few years for his style to mature.
February 28, 2019
Si hubiera leído esto cuando era un adolescente, tal vez no la hubiera pasado tan mal.
Brooks hace algo que muchos escritores actuales intentan, eso es retratar a los jovenes del siglo XXI, a esos muchachos que a los quince años ya toman, ya fuman, ya tienen sexo, pero que aún así tienen preguntas como todo chico de quince años. Etgar es un muchacho que bebe mucho y tiene amigos, también tiene una novia, pero luego descubre algo y debe terminar con ella. En la adolescencia cuando algo importante se daña uno cree que es el fin del mundo y que jamás tendra algo igual. Es la primera vez que uno experimenta muchas cosas y las vive a carne viva, me encantó todo eso.
También toca un tema que me fascinó que tocara, y es como aunque tengamos quince años, ya se tiene la cabeza para saber que esta mal y que no, y que haya una especie de relación pedofila entre Etgar y otra mujer, el muchacho no la ve así, me ecantá como Brooks retrata lo cerrado que estan los adultos en no querer entender la mente de un adolescente. Y claro la referencia a Lolita, que aunque todos sabemos que el Humbert Humbert estaba mal de la cabeza, no quita el papel de Lolita en la historia, y aquí Brooks quiere cambiar los roles y dar una visión contemporanea de ese tema.
Una obra que deberiamos leer para recordar lo que es ser un adolscente.
Brooks hace algo que muchos escritores actuales intentan, eso es retratar a los jovenes del siglo XXI, a esos muchachos que a los quince años ya toman, ya fuman, ya tienen sexo, pero que aún así tienen preguntas como todo chico de quince años. Etgar es un muchacho que bebe mucho y tiene amigos, también tiene una novia, pero luego descubre algo y debe terminar con ella. En la adolescencia cuando algo importante se daña uno cree que es el fin del mundo y que jamás tendra algo igual. Es la primera vez que uno experimenta muchas cosas y las vive a carne viva, me encantó todo eso.
También toca un tema que me fascinó que tocara, y es como aunque tengamos quince años, ya se tiene la cabeza para saber que esta mal y que no, y que haya una especie de relación pedofila entre Etgar y otra mujer, el muchacho no la ve así, me ecantá como Brooks retrata lo cerrado que estan los adultos en no querer entender la mente de un adolescente. Y claro la referencia a Lolita, que aunque todos sabemos que el Humbert Humbert estaba mal de la cabeza, no quita el papel de Lolita en la historia, y aquí Brooks quiere cambiar los roles y dar una visión contemporanea de ese tema.
Una obra que deberiamos leer para recordar lo que es ser un adolscente.
March 3, 2017
So I read the blurb off the front of the book (by Nick Cave so I should've known better) and I wasn't blown away. Also I think the author is a long way from being the next generation's Irvine Welsh. But I certainly recognize the talent in his writing and he was able to write a cogent and collected novel at a young age, which is much more than can be said of loads of other published authors. I also read another review stating this was the most overrated new author of all time. That's certainly not true. The tool set is definitely there even if this wasn't the most amazing book I've ever read (or even the most amazing book I'll read this year). Better than stuff I've seen classified as classically untouchable, and not nearly as good as stuff I've read that's received no plaudits at all. Interesting enough to have me try another of his books.
June 1, 2015
Parece un libro de Martin Amis, o sea, gente pajillera que come en la cama, ve mucho la tele, se explota los granos, bebe mucho, fuma mucho y vomita. Muy entretenido y con algunas ideas muy buenas, como la propuesta de elegir a un desconocido cualquiera para llamarle cuando tengas que tomar una decisión y escuchar sus consejos.
Ah, me ha parecido muy fuerte que chavales de 14 años hagan lo de lluvia dorada, pongan nombre a sus hijos abortados y vayan drogados a los entierros.
Ah, me ha parecido muy fuerte que chavales de 14 años hagan lo de lluvia dorada, pongan nombre a sus hijos abortados y vayan drogados a los entierros.
February 5, 2017
Me encantó este libro porque es muy Submarine y la verdad no esperaba tanto de él pero ¿EN SERIO TUVIERON QUE PONER QUE VEÍA VIDEOS FEOS DE GATITOS? Aaaahh, todo me gustó menos eso; puedo soportar cualquier cosa menos que maltraten a los gatitos. :(
December 30, 2018
Me ha encantado, no esperaba que este libro me gustase tanto, una historia de amor sucia, depresiva y decadente y con un final tristísimo de esos que se ven venir a millas y no puedes hacer nada para evitarlo, me fascinan este tipo de cosas.
February 24, 2017
I'm glad this was a library book. It was a fast read which was probably its most redeeming quality. It was in disjointed, unbelievable, and full of misogyny
May 12, 2018
Videorecensione: https://youtu.be/RE6y1V16t5w
September 6, 2014
To its credit, I tore through this really quickly. It's not overly-long and the pacing is fine (except for the end) but there are issues with it.
The main character and his parents and his friends are all the same breed of quirky. I think it would be ok if Etgar was the quirky one and existed outside normalcy, but for every character to be like this gets wearing (and is wildly unrealistic). Also, there's a weird distance between Etgar's powers of perception in some cases as how insightfully he describes the world around him, and then how little and weird his understanding of social norms are (norms he would arguably have to know about in order to subvert them so deliberately).
It also didn't really explore the implications of his relationship at. all. for either him or the teacher. It doesn't sit in the same class as Lolita, nor even really the same school - maybe if it had a different title I wouldn't judge it so harshly, but this was deliberate choice by the writer and publisher to draw a parallel, which for me is unsuitable.
The main character and his parents and his friends are all the same breed of quirky. I think it would be ok if Etgar was the quirky one and existed outside normalcy, but for every character to be like this gets wearing (and is wildly unrealistic). Also, there's a weird distance between Etgar's powers of perception in some cases as how insightfully he describes the world around him, and then how little and weird his understanding of social norms are (norms he would arguably have to know about in order to subvert them so deliberately).
It also didn't really explore the implications of his relationship at. all. for either him or the teacher. It doesn't sit in the same class as Lolita, nor even really the same school - maybe if it had a different title I wouldn't judge it so harshly, but this was deliberate choice by the writer and publisher to draw a parallel, which for me is unsuitable.
June 19, 2019
Creo que es, hasta la fecha, el peor libro que he leído en mi vida.
El título en fin . . . nada que decir.
La forma de escribir, fatal, parece un adolescente de 14 o 15 años escribiendo, no tiene nada interesante en su escritura. Ni siquiera parece un escritor intentando dar tono adolescente. No, es que escribe mal.
Luego el tema... no quiero hacer spoilers, pero todo muy tonto y sacado por la manga. No hay desarrollo de personajes. Parece más bien como una película de sábado de Antena 3. Exactamente eso, pero hecho libro, y mal escrito.
Una decepción absoluta, que me alegro de no haber comprado.
El título en fin . . . nada que decir.
La forma de escribir, fatal, parece un adolescente de 14 o 15 años escribiendo, no tiene nada interesante en su escritura. Ni siquiera parece un escritor intentando dar tono adolescente. No, es que escribe mal.
Luego el tema... no quiero hacer spoilers, pero todo muy tonto y sacado por la manga. No hay desarrollo de personajes. Parece más bien como una película de sábado de Antena 3. Exactamente eso, pero hecho libro, y mal escrito.
Una decepción absoluta, que me alegro de no haber comprado.
June 28, 2014
A friend let me borrow this book. She warned me ahead of time that it isn't something that I'd be used to reading. Knowing that going in, I had an open mind.
I'll keep it short. My rating for this story is because I was bored by it and because of the way the story is told. The subject matter is a bit cringe-worthy, but that's not why I gave it 1 star. The storytelling was largely boring up until the end and then it rushed to a hasty, unsatisfying finish.
I'll keep it short. My rating for this story is because I was bored by it and because of the way the story is told. The subject matter is a bit cringe-worthy, but that's not why I gave it 1 star. The storytelling was largely boring up until the end and then it rushed to a hasty, unsatisfying finish.
June 13, 2018
Víctima de los blurbs y las reseñas que cuentan como peso el aire, terminé comprando este libro que es apenas mediocre. Un trainspotting bastante ñoño e ingenuo. Pueden ahorrarse tiempo y dinero y no leer esto.
June 26, 2018
O me hago mayor y los niños crecen demasiado rápido o me parece que Etgar por su modo de hablar y actuar no puede tener 15 años. La trama no está mal si se hubiese narrado de otra manera. Lo bueno que tiene es que no tienes que perder mucho el tiempo en leerlo ya que la lectura es fácil.
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