Weekly “what are you reading” thread # 11

To discuss your weekly readings of books, textbooks, papers, etc.

I’m currently on Chapter 3 Part 2 of Lolita (page 166 of the annotated edition). I have no idea why people say this book is pedophilia apologia, or why some say the main character is “sympathetic”. Humbert Humbert is not just a perv, he’s a psychopath as well. He marries a woman he loathes solely so he could lust after his preteen daughter, he feels no remorse, guilt or sadness when she dies (I think he killed her, Charlotte’s death was way to convenient for it to be an accident), he kidnaps the girl, sexually abuses her and blackmails her by telling if she dares to turn him over to the police, she’ll end up in an orphanage and therefore is better off with him. There is nothing likable about this besides the fact he’s funny and witty. As for the witting, is absolutely beautiful, so many references, wordplay and french quotes, you can tell how great Nabokov was by making such a great book with a such a delicate subject as this.