Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
The novel tells the story of Humbert Humbert, a man with a disturbing obsession for young girls, or "nymphets" as he calls them. His obsession leads him to engage in a manipulative and destructive relationship with his 12-year-old stepdaughter, Lolita. The narrative is a controversial exploration of manipulation, obsession, and unreliable narration, as Humbert attempts to justify his actions and feelings throughout the story.
The 14th greatest book of all time
Ranking Details:
Our ranking system awards points to books based on their appearance and position on curated lists. Here's how it works:
Unranked Lists: For lists without specific rankings, each book receives points equivalent to the list's weight. This approach recognizes the book's inclusion on prestigious lists.
Ranked Lists: Books on ranked lists receive points in two ways:
- Base Points: Initially, every book is awarded points equal to the list's weight, acknowledging its significance.
- Bonus Points: Additionally, books earn bonus points based on their ranking. The total bonus pool, equal to 100% of the list's weight, is distributed among the books, with higher-ranked books receiving more points.
Exponential Distribution: The distribution of bonus points follows an exponential model. This means the top-ranked book (#1) receives significantly more bonus points than those further down the list (e.g., #100). Our algorithm ensures that higher placements are rewarded more generously, reflecting the achievement of a top rank on any given list.
This scoring system ensures that each book's ranking reflects both its presence on multiple lists and its positions within those lists, providing a comprehensive measure of its acclaim and popularity.
List Date Penalty Feature
In our continuous effort to provide the most accurate and fair rankings, we have introduced a new feature: the List Date Penalty. This feature aims to reduce recency bias in our rankings by applying a penalty to books based on their publication dates relative to the list's publication date.
How It Works
- Publication Date Comparison: For each book on a list, we compare its publication date to the publication date of the list.
-
Penalty Application:
- Maximum Penalty: If a book was published in the same year as the list, it receives the maximum penalty, as we believe it hasn't had enough time to stand the test of time.
- Proportional Penalty: Books that were published in the years leading up to the list's publication date receive a proportional penalty based on the number of years they have been available.
- No Penalty: Books that were published more than a specified number of years (max age for penalty) before the list's publication date do not receive any penalty, acknowledging their enduring relevance and influence.
Why This Matters
By mitigating recency bias, the List Date Penalty feature helps to ensure that books that have had more time to be evaluated by readers and critics are given their due weight. This results in a more equitable and historically balanced ranking that truly reflects the greatest books of all time.
Total Points: 6166
This book was first published in 1955
97 Lists
- score: 221 -- The 100 Best Books from 1900 to the Present - 2024 (Weight: 190)
- score: 217 -- The Top 10: The Greatest Books of All Time - 2007 (Weight: 180)
- score: 216 -- El Pais Favorite Books of 100 Spanish Authors - 2008 (Weight: 190)
- score: 200 -- 'The perfect library': the 196 books selected by 133 personalities - 2020 (Weight: 190)
- score: 195 -- The 50 best books of the past 100 years - 2022 (Weight: 167)
- score: 195 -- For The Love of Books - 1999 (Weight: 180)
- score: 190 -- 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die - 2006 (Weight: 180)
- score: 190 -- Top 100 Works in World Literature - 2002 (Weight: 200)
- score: 176 -- The 100 Best Novels Of All Time In English - 2026 (Weight: 160)
- score: 175 -- The Great American Novels - 2024 (Weight: 166)
- score: 170 -- Best Foreign Work of Fiction Chosen by Francophone Writers - 2006 (Weight: 170)
- score: 169 -- Harenberg Buch der 1000 Bücher - 2005 (Weight: 160)
- score: 160 -- 25 acclaimed international writers choose 25 of the best books from the last 25 years - 2013 (Weight: 160)
- score: 158 -- Books Of The Century - 1999 (Weight: 150)
- score: 153 -- Daily Telegraph's 100 Books of the Century, 1900-1999 - 1999 (Weight: 160)
- score: 150 -- The Main Works of Russian literature - 2018 (Weight: 150)
- score: 148 -- 1000 Novels Everyone Must Read - 2009 (Weight: 140)
- score: 148 -- The Ideal Library - 2024 (Weight: 120)
- score: 145 -- The New York Public Library's Books of the Century - 1996 (Weight: 160)
- score: 125 -- The 75 Best Books of the Past 75 Years - 2016 (Weight: 118)
- score: 124 -- Best Books (Fiction, Prose) : Experts Choose Their Favourites - 1996 (Weight: 137)
- score: 123 -- As if You Don't Have Enough to Read, Fiction Edition - 2011 (Weight: 100)
- score: 120 -- Big Read (Bulgarian) - 2009 (Weight: 120)
- score: 119 -- The 100 Best Novels of the 20th Century - 1999 (Weight: 118)
- score: 105 -- 200 Books That Shaped 200 Years of Literature - 2021 (Weight: 105)
- score: 104 -- The Greatest 20th Century Novels - 1997 (Weight: 120)
- score: 99 -- Le Monde's 100 Books of the Century - 1999 (Weight: 100)
- score: 92 -- The 100 Most Important Translations - 2018 (Weight: 80)
- score: 91 -- TrueLit's Top 100 Favorite Books (2023) - 2023 (Weight: 80)
- score: 86 -- Koen Book Distributors Top 100 Books of the Past Century - 1999 (Weight: 89)
- score: 86 -- The Modern Library | 100 Best Novels - 1999 (Weight: 79)
- score: 84 -- Books that Shaped the Century - 2020 (Weight: 80)
- score: 83 -- Radcliffe's 100 Best Novels - 1998 (Weight: 80)
- score: 75 -- 100 Best Books - 2010 (Weight: 70)
- score: 73 -- Quintessential American Fiction, According to the Rest of the World - 2015 (Weight: 60)
- score: 70 -- The Celebrity Reading List - 2007 (Weight: 60)
- score: 70 -- Our Users' Top 100 Favorite Books of All Time - 2024 (Weight: 60)
- score: 67 -- The Big Read - 2003 (Weight: 70)
- score: 64 -- The 100 Greatest Novels - 2008 (Weight: 61)
- score: 64 -- 50 Greatest Books of All Time - 2008 (Weight: 61)
- score: 61 -- 4chan’s Literature Board’s Aggregate Top 100 Books for the Decade 2014 - 2024 - 2024 (Weight: 50)
- score: 58 -- "Our Readable Century", The Best Books of the 20th Century -- Honorable Mention - 2000 (Weight: 60)
- score: 55 -- R/ClassicLiterature's Top 100 Favorite Books - 2026 (Weight: 50)
- score: 52 -- Harold Bloom's The Western Canon - 1994 (Weight: 60)
- score: 51 -- The 101 Favorite Novels of 'Le Monde' Readers - 2019 (Weight: 50)
- score: 48 -- 50 Memorable Books from 50 Years of Books to Remember - 2005 (Weight: 46)
- score: 42 -- A Century of World Literature 1925 - 2025 - 2025 (Weight: 40)
- score: 39 -- Harvard Book Store Staff's Favorite 100 Books - 2011 (Weight: 33)
- score: 37 -- Waterstone's Books of the Century - 1997 (Weight: 40)
- score: 37 -- In Which These Are the 100 Greatest Novels - 2011 (Weight: 30)
- score: 31 -- Donna Tartt's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library" - 2020 (Weight: 30)
- score: 31 -- The Novel 100: A Ranking of the Greatest Novels of All Time - 2004 (Weight: 30)
- score: 29 -- 100 Best 20th-Century American Books - 1999 (Weight: 31)
- score: 28 -- The New Lifetime Reading Plan - 1999 (Weight: 30)
- score: 28 -- The Modern Library's 100 Best Novels: The Readers' List - 1998 (Weight: 30)
- score: 26 -- 50 Books to Read Before You Die - 2012 (Weight: 26)
- score: 23 -- The 500 best books of all time from Culture Café users - 2008 (Weight: 20)
- score: 20 -- 100 Essential Books - 2009 (Weight: 20)
- score: 16 -- TIME Magazine All Time 100 Novels - 2005 (Weight: 16)
- score: 12 -- Distinguished Fiction, 1945-1965. - 1965 (Weight: 30)
- score: 10 -- David Bowie's Top 100 Favorite Books - 2016 (Weight: 10)
- score: 10 -- 25 Books to Read Before You Die - 2023 (Weight: 10)
- score: 10 -- 50 Books to (Re-)Read at 50 - 2012 (Weight: 10)
- score: 10 -- Readers’ Top 100 Novels Of All Time - 2026 (Weight: 10)
- score: 10 -- The Telegraph’s 100 Novels Everyone Should Read - 2009 (Weight: 10)
- score: 10 -- The 100 Greatest Novels of All Time: The List - 2003 (Weight: 10)
- score: 10 -- How to Read Literature Like a Professor: A Reading List - 2003 (Weight: 10)
- score: 5 -- An Expert's 200-Book List - 1973 (Weight: 10)
- score: 5 -- Everything You Should Read without Being a Library Rat - 1972 (Weight: 10)
- score: 1 -- D. G. Myers’ 50 Greatest English Language Novels - 2009 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- Entertainment Weekly's Top 100 Novels - 2013 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- 20th Century's Greatest Hits: 100 English-Language Books of Fiction - 1999 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- 100 Best Novels Written in English - 2015 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- 125 Books We Love for Adults - 2020 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- The Booklist Century: 100 Books, 100 Years - 2005 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- The Modern Library: The Two Hundred Best Novels in English Since 1950 - 2011 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- 100 Books to Read in a Lifetime - 2014 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- The Graphic Canon - 2012 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- The Best Classics - 2006 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- 1,000 Books to Read Before You Die: A Life-Changing List - 2018 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- The 100 Greatest American Novels, 1893 – 1993 - 2013 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- The 80 Books Every Man Should Read - 2015 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- From Zero to Well-Read in 100 Books - 2013 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- 501 Must-Read Books - 2006 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- 100 Books to Read in a Lifetime - 2014 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- Best Books Ever - 2006 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- A Century of Reading - 2018 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- The Greatest Books of All Time - 2022 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- 100 Must-Read Classics, as Chosen by our Readers - 2022 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- The Best Of The Century - 1999 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- The Complete 500: OCLC - 2024 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- 50 Classics You Must Read Before You Die - 2024 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- The new modern classics — the nation’s favourite 20th century novels - 2024 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- Top 100 Books - 1999 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- Edmonton's Top 100 - 1998 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- One Hundred Best American Novels, 1770 to 1985 - 2014 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- 100 Most Influential Books of the Century - 2000 (Weight: 1)