2023 March: Vladimir Nabokov's Lolita

[Lesle, Appalachian Bibliophile]

Vladimir Nabokov Russian American (April 22, 1899—July 2, 1977) was a prolific, trilingual Russian-American novelist, poet, professor, translator, and entomologist. His name is nearly synonymous with the novel Lolita (1955), which centers on the shocking conceit of a middle-aged man’s obsession with a young girl. It became a record-breaking best-seller and brought him international fame. Paired with his critically acclaimed Pale Fire (1962), Nabokov is consistently regarded as one of the most influential writers of the 20th century, known for his maximalist, poetic style and intricately structured plots.

Are you ready to dip into Lolita finally!

[Lesle, Appalachian Bibliophile]

Fast Facts: Vladimir Nabokov

-Full Name: Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov
-Also Known As: Vladimir Sirin (pen name)
-Known For: Celebrated literary giant of the 20th century, novels gained commercial and critical acclaim
-Born: April 22, 1899 in Saint Petersburg, Russia
-Parents: Vladimir Dmitrievich Nabokov and Yelena Ivanovna Rukavishnikova
-Died: July 2, 1977 in Montreux, Switzerland
-Education: University of Cambridge
-Selected Works: Lolita (1955), Pnin (1957), Pale Fire (1962), Speak, Memory (1936-1966), Ada (1969)
-Awards and Honors: Nominated for the National Book Award seven times
-Spouse: Véra Nabokov
-Children: Dmitri Nabokov

*Notable quote: “Literature is invention. Fiction is fiction. To call a story a true story is an insult to both truth and art.”

[Lesle, Appalachian Bibliophile]

Lolita a 1955 novel is prefaced by a fictitious foreword by one John Ray Jr., an editor of psychology books. Ray states that he is presenting a memoir written by a man using the pseudonym "Humbert Humbert", who had recently died of heart disease while awaiting a murder trial in jail. The memoir, which addresses the audience as his jury, begins with Humbert's birth in Paris in 1910 to an English mother and Swiss father. He spends his childhood on the French Riviera, where he falls in love with his friend Annabel Leigh. This youthful and physically unfulfilled love is interrupted by Annabel's premature death from typhus, which causes Humbert to become sexually obsessed with a specific type of girl, aged 9 to 14, whom he refers to as "nymphets".

[Lesle, Appalachian Bibliophile]

Pale Fire Published in 1962, Shade's poem digressively describes many aspects of his life. Canto 1 includes his early encounters with death and glimpses of what he takes to be the supernatural. Canto 2 is about his family and the apparent suicide of his daughter, Hazel Shade.

Speak, Memory an autobiographical memoir, the book is dedicated to his wife, Vera, and covers his life from 1903 until his emigration to America in 1940. The first twelve chapters describe Nabokov's remembrance of his youth in an aristocratic family living in pre-revolutionary Saint Petersburg and at their country estate Vyra, near Siverskaya. The three remaining chapters recall his years at Cambridge and as part of the Russian émigré community in Berlin and Paris. Through memory Nabokov is able to possess the past.

Notable works
The Luzhin Defense (1930)
Despair (1934)
Invitation to a Beheading(1936)
The Gift (1938)
The Enchanter (1939)
Signs and Symbols (1948)
LolitaLolita (1955)
Pnin (1957)
Pale Fire (1962)
Speak, Memory (1936–1966)
Ada, or Ardor: A Family Chronicle (1969)

[Lesle, Appalachian Bibliophile]

Do you have plans for reading any of his books for this month?
or
Are you ready to dip into Lolita finally!

[Georgina]

I’m already about a third of my way through. The writing and characters are really compelling, but the subject is making my skin crawl.

[Piyangie, Classical Princess]

I'll be reading Lolita. Hope to start by mid-month.

[Shaina]

I have been putting this book off for the same reason... the topic makes my skin crawl

[Rosemarie, Northern Roaming Scholar]

I put off reading it for many years, but am glad I finally did. It's a book that makes you think.

[Book Nerd, Purple Book Horse]

I read Lolita a few years ago.
It wasn't even the pedophilia that bothered me that much. The guy was just messed up in the head. It's that he was such a creepy, manipulative piece of shit.

[Rosemarie, Northern Roaming Scholar]

That describes him exactly, Book Nerd!

[Luís]

I'm thinking of reading Nabokov even this year - The Real Life of Sebastian Knight

[Inese]

So far I have read only "Lolita" by Nabokov. So, I want to read something else. I tried the first pages of Pale Fire but it seems too challenging for me considering English is not my native language. I think I will try Pnin instead.

[Jerry]

Luís wrote: "I'm thinking of reading Nabokov even this year - The Real Life of Sebastian Knight"

Good choice! I read it about a year ago and loved it. Only afterwards learned it's like Nabokov's best kept secret (among fans), as it's not as well known as Lolita, Pnin, or Pale Fire.

[Jerry]

Invitation to a Beheading is one of my all time favorites. While I'd love to reread Lolita for a third time, my 2023 to-read list is pretty full.

[Lesle, Appalachian Bibliophile]

That's okay Jerry you can always stop in to make comments or help if others get stumped on something!

[Luís]

Jerry wrote: "Luís wrote: "I'm thinking of reading Nabokov even this year - The Real Life of Sebastian Knight"

Good choice! I read it about a year ago and loved it. Only afterwards learned it's lik..."

Thank you for the advice! I will even attempt to buy Invitation to a Beheading

[Cosmic]

Pale Fire

I will read this book! I have already read Lolita.

[Georgia]

Inese wrote: "So far I have read only "Lolita" by Nabokov. So, I want to read something else. I tried the first pages of Pale Fire but it seems too challenging for me considering English is not my na..."

Speak, Memory is another worth reading. You'll learn a lot about Nabokov's early years, family, tutors, and love of butterflies.

[Lesle, Appalachian Bibliophile]

Georgia your view point in your review is very interesting.

While looking at some of the comments that followed I was not aware he may have based Lolita off a True Story. Somewhere I read that in his home was newspaper clippings of him following this story.

In 1948, an 11-year-old girl named Sally Horner was kidnapped by a convicted rapist named Frank La Salle.
He held her captive for 21 months. He made her pretend to be his daughter in public, and raped her in private.

Her ordeal was the inspiration for Vladimir Nabokov's novel Lolita, which has sold over 50 million copies and was one of the most controversial novels of the 20th century.
But in all the furor over the book, Horner's story has been forgotten.
Canadian author Sarah Weinman's book The Real Lolita: The Kidnapping of Sally Horner and the Novel that Scandalized the World is an extensively-reported account of Horner's life and captivity.

An article:
https://hazlitt.net/longreads/real-lo...

[Georgina]

Leslie, that’s really interesting, I’ve just noticed that Sally Horner and Frank Lasalle are referenced in the book in Chapter 33. I would never have picked up on this if you knowledgable people hadn’t pointed out that this was the basis of the story.
I’m truly taken in by the writing, I really wasn’t sure how I’d find it, but once I’d got through the first 25% I was hooked. I think once the ‘relationship’ has started it is somehow less stomach churning than knowing that it’s coming, if that makes any sense. It’s also not as graphic as I was expecting.

[Lesle, Appalachian Bibliophile]

Georgina I was worried after I read what Wikipedia had said that the read might be to harsh to stomach.

[Piyangie, Classical Princess]

Lesle wrote: "Georgia your view point in your review is very interesting.

While looking at some of the comments that followed I was not aware he may have based Lolita off a True Story. Somewhere I read that in ..."

This is very interesting, Lesle. I just started reading Lolita, and this knowledge will give me a further boost. I don't think it'll be an easy read for me, knowing what is to come, but the idea that it was based on a true story is encouraging.

[Armin]

I read it last year. It was a group read in another group and I got into a long discussion with some members that were in disagreement with my opinions, so I won't discuss it much this time :)

I just can say that it's pretty harsh to read.

[Piyangie, Classical Princess]

I agree with you, Armin. It's a difficult read - listen rather, since I'm doing the audio. I don't have a physical copy, so, don't know how many chapters are there in the book. The audiobooks has 10 long chapters. I listened to the first 3 and stopped. I need to see to the end now that I've begun, but it will take a longer time than I planned.

[Lesle, Appalachian Bibliophile]

Armin wrote: "I just can say that it's pretty harsh to read..."

Upon reviewing several articles about it and a review from

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/19...

I decided against purchasing or reading this.

[Lesle, Appalachian Bibliophile]

He published short stories in the Atlantic and the New Yorker magazines in English, while still writing his memoirs in Russian, and agonizing to switch from Russian to English. It took him 6 years to complete "Lolita" (1955), a controversial story of a pedophile's desire for a 12-year-old girl, who reminds him of the little girl he loved as a boy. The novel was banned in America and the UK until 1958. He later wrote a screenplay for the film Lolita (1962), directed by Stanley Kubrick. Lolita and "Pale Fire" (1962) are his best known novels. In 1964 Nabokov published his four-volume translation of 'Eugene Onegin' by Alexander Pushkin, on which he worked for 10 years. He later made English translations of poems by Mikhail Lermontov and Fyodor Tyutchev. His own later works: the artfully constructed 'Ada' (1969), 'Transparent Things' (1972), and the autobiographic 'Look at the Harlequins' (1975), were translated into Russian by his son Dimitri. Nabokov also published scholarly works on Nikolay Gogol, James Joyce and Franz Kafka.


Is anyone reading one of his other works and how are you finding it to be?

[Lesle, Appalachian Bibliophile]

I found this question to be interesting, what do you think?

Why might Nabokov have chosen to name his protagonist "Humbert Humbert"?

[Book Nerd, Purple Book Horse]

It always sounded to me like "hump hump" as in he can't control his urges.

[Piyangie, Classical Princess]

I'm having a hard time listening to Lolita. The story is making me almost nauseous! I've done about 50% and will try my best to persevere. But this is the creepiest book I've ever read!

[Lesle, Appalachian Bibliophile]

I would forgive you if you accidently turned the radio on so it drowns out the audio!

[Piyangie, Classical Princess]

Haha, Lesle. :) Thanks. I'm doing all I can to distract myself while listening. What a reading/listening experience I'm having with this book!

[Lesle, Appalachian Bibliophile]

I defiantly give you kudos for hanging in there!

[Rosemarie, Northern Roaming Scholar]

In the film version, Lolita was portrayed as an older teenager. James Mason was Humbert and Shelley Winters was the mom. Peter Sellars was Kwilty(I think that was the name, maybe it's spelled wrong).

[Lesle, Appalachian Bibliophile]

Shelly Winters....oh I havent seen anything with her in it for years!

[Cleo]

Ugh! I'm not interested in putting this subject matter into my head. I will read one of Nabokov's works eventually but honestly, there's enough screwed up people and depressing subjects in life already without adding to them.

[Lesle, Appalachian Bibliophile]

I can understand your thoughts on this Cleo!

[Piyangie, Classical Princess]

Incidentally, I came across a contemporary fiction named My Dark Vanessa which addresses a student teacher sexual relationship. The underage girl, now a grown up woman, thinks it's love till an incident leads her to question her past relationship. I feel that it's kind of a Lolita story from a different angle, and am interested in reading it. Has any one of you read it?

[Lesle, Appalachian Bibliophile]

My Dark Vanessa I have never heard of.

[Piyangie, Classical Princess]

I finally finished Lolita. Feel so much relieved now that it's over. I've never been this stressed over a book! On a positive note, however, Nabokov writes well. Ironically, it's his brilliant writing that makes us loathe the story. I'd like to read him again at some point provided that the subject matter of the work is pleasant.

[Lesle, Appalachian Bibliophile]

I have to give you kudos Piyangie, you prevailed on something I could not even start! Congratulations!!

I have deemed you the recipient of the first ever Golden Perseverance NTLTRC Award

🏆 = Trophy 🥇= Gold Medal 💐 = Bouquet of Flowers

[Rosemarie, Northern Roaming Scholar]

And don't forget this-🍰

[Piyangie, Classical Princess]

Lesle wrote: "I have to give you kudos Piyangie, you prevailed on something I could not even start! Congratulations!!

I have deemed you the recipient of the first ever Golden Perseverance NTLTRC Award

🏆 = Tr..."

What a wonderful reward! :) Thanks, Lesle.

[Piyangie, Classical Princess]

Rosemarie wrote: "And don't forget this-🍰"

Thanks, Rosemarie.

[Luís]

Congrats, Piyangie.

[Piyangie, Classical Princess]

Luís wrote: "Congrats, Piyangie."

Thanks, Luis.

[Lesle, Appalachian Bibliophile]

Rosemarie wrote: "And don't forget this-🍰"

I did Rosemarie! Nothing better than cake for a celebration!!

[Rosemarie, Northern Roaming Scholar]

Cake is good!

[Bjcs]

The one sentence I wont forget from this book.... “the dandelions had changed from suns to moons.”

Wonderful.

[Lesle, Appalachian Bibliophile]

Bjcs wrote: "The one sentence I wont forget from this book.... “the dandelions had changed from suns to moons.”

Wonderful."

Sounds beautiful Bjcs!