Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

Historical fiction mixes with scandalous romance in the novel Lolita. Awe and exhilaration--along with heartbreak and mordant wit--abound in Lolita, Nabokov's most famous and controversial novel, which tells the story of the aging Humbert Humbert's obsessive, devouring, and doomed passion for the nymphet Dolores Haze. Lolita is also the story of a hyper civilized European colliding with the cheerful barbarism of postwar America. Most of all, it is a meditation on love--love as outrage and hallucination, madness and transformation. It follows Humbert, the unreliable protagonist who falls in love with twelve year old Dolores after becoming her stepfather. And of course, his private name for the innocent Dolores is Lolita. 


What sets this book apart is the incredible sentence variation and poetry of the language. The book is also notable for its writing style. The narrative is highly subjective as Humbert draws on his fragmented memories, employing a sophisticated prose style, while attempting to gain the reader's sympathy through his sincerity and melancholy, although near the end of the story Humbert refers to himself as a "maniac" who "deprived" Dolores "of her childhood", and he shortly thereafter states "the most miserable of family lives was better than the parody of incest" in which they were involved. All and all this book uses the power of language to entice its reader and to intoxicate you with this tongue-and-check, rule bending approach to romance.

I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a technically and conceptually complex novel, whether you enjoy reading historical fiction or not. This book is like french chocolate, deliciously rich and will leave you feeling utterly satisfied. Read the book Naked Lunch? Then you'll love Lolita.

Identical by Ellen Hopkins

To the world, twins Kaeleigh and Raeanne appear to live a picture perfect life. But of course nothing is as it seems. Kaeleigh and Raeanne are identical down to the dimple. As daughters of a district-court judge father and a politician mother, they are an all-American family -- on the surface. Behind the facade each sister has her own dark secret, and that's where their differences begin. For Kaeleigh, she's the misplaced focus of Daddy's love, intended for a mother whose presence on the campaign trail means absence at home. All that Raeanne sees is Daddy playing a game of favorites -- and she is losing. If she has to lose, she will do it on her own terms, so she chooses drugs, alcohol, and sex. Secrets like the ones the twins are harboring are not meant to be kept -- from each other or anyone else. Pretty soon it's obvious that neither sister can handle it alone, and one sister must step up to save the other, but the question is -- who?

 The fifth book by Hopkins, following the similar trend of non-rhyming free verse. Yet again, Hopkins has exploded the private lives of teens, leaving no gritty detail to the imagination. This book will leave you raw and craving for answers. Maybe you'll even find yourself describing your own thoughts through poetry. You won't be able to put the book down and the twists of the plot will lead you to a very surprising resolution. So hold on tight, because this book will jerk you right out of your reality and into one of a darker caliber. 


I would recommend this book to anyone who has read any of Ellen Hopkins' other novels (Crank, Glass, Impulse to name a few). Like poetry? Then you'll love Hopkins' take on words. And don't be scared off by the length of these novels. You'll have reach the last page before you know it. So grab Identical now and find out the truth behind this mysterious set of twins.