Lolita

(via Goodreads)

Two things I realized when finishing Lolita for the second time yesterday: first, I was really really really innocent the first time I read this book. Second, you will never really hate someone if you had read their thoughts and views (remind me of Atticus Finch’s quote!)

The story? Well, it’s about Humbert Humbert, a man who sees Annabel, his very first love, in Dolores Haze, a nymphet. I agree with those who say that Lolita is “a story about the exploitation of a weak adult by a corrupt child, and not the corruption of an innocent child by a cunning adult”. Maybe because Nabokov told the story first-person, and he never give us any of Dolores/Lolita’s view. We’ll never know how sweet Lolita was, but you will hate the Lolita character instantly.

So, now I understand the whole story. I can’t say I liked it, but I will say that it gives me an unusual experience. Mixed language (with french); how Humbert Humbert always change to Humbird, Humburg, and else; the Humbert-wrote-it-while-waiting-for-the-execution format; and many more.

After all, it’s a classic. You should read it for the sake of experience.

xoxo

N.