Originally published in 1955, Lolita is perhaps Vladimir Nabokov's most famous work. It is noteworthy for its controversial subject matter, telling the story of its unreliable narrator, a middle-aged professor going by the pseudonym Humber Humbert and his obsessive relationship with a twelve-year-old girl, which becomes sexual after he becomes her stepfather.
Nabokov originally intended to publish Lolita under a pseudonym of his own, given its subject matter, and the manuscript was turned down by a number of publishers. Finally, Nabokov managed to find a publisher in France, Olympia Press, with whom he signed a contract to publish Lolita under his own name.
The first American edition of...