My Rating: 5 stars
Prior to reading this book, I knew very little about the
real life abduction case that had served as the inspiration behind Vladimir
Nabokov’s controversial classic Lolita. All I knew was that such a case existed and
that the name of the “real-life Lolita” was Sally Horner, who was 11-years-old
when she was abducted. Going into this
book, all I knew was that it would be a fictional retelling of Sally Horner’s
story and with my limited knowledge of that case, my first instinct was to do
my own research and get some details down before starting – but one of my
friends who had read this book earlier suggested that, in order to get the full
impact of the story, I should wait until
I finished the book before looking up any further details about the case, so I
decided to follow that advice. While I’m
not sure whether knowing details of the case beforehand would’ve affected my
reaction to the book or not, I can
say that almost immediately after finishing the last page and closing the
cover, I went online in a frenzy and looked up everything I could possibly find
about Sally Horner’s case. At the time,
I felt an overwhelming sense of urgency to look up the real-life facts of the
case, not because I wanted to validate what I had just read (since I already knew
this would be a fictionalized account), but because the story had such a huge
impact on me emotionally – looking back now, I realize I wanted to find out
details of the real-life case so I could convince myself that what I had read
in this book was more fiction than fact and in doing so, hopefully restore the confidence
I had lost in a society that had let a depraved, sick individual like Frank
LaSalle – whose previous offenses should’ve been enough to keep him locked up
for good – out loose into the world and do the horrible things that he did to Sally. Unfortunately, the society we live in
currently hasn’t changed for the better, as these horrific cases continue to
happen even now -- the Frank LaSalles of the world continue to get let out into
society (when there is absolutely no sensible reason for them to still be
walking the streets) and continue to destroy the lives of innocent children as
well as their families.
Needless to say, this book was tough to read and while I applaud
the respectful and sensitive way that the author T. Greenwood handled the
subject matter, reading this book still left me emotionally drained. My heart broke over and over again reading
about Sally’s horrific ordeal and I found myself crying out in angry
frustration over each missed opportunity, each dashed hope, each chance that people
had to “do something” but either couldn’t or didn’t want to bother. The way that Greenwood handled the narrative,
alternating the voice between Sally and the various characters in the story
(thankfully never from the abductor’s point-of-view) was hauntingly powerful
and for me, played a huge role in making the story so emotional and heartfelt
for me – I especially appreciate how Greenwood gave each member of Sally’s
family a voice and explored their feelings, emotions, actions, etc. in so much depth,
giving this fictionalized story a necessary realistic depth that is not often
found in imagined retellings of real-life events.
Greenwood did a phenomenal job with this book – the delicate way in which she handled the story,
telling what needed to be told but in a manner that was careful not to exploit and
that was sensitive to both Sally’s family as well as the readers of this story;
the way she was able to bring the characters to life so wholly and completely
and have them occupy her readers’ hearts so fully, to the point that I will
admit I felt a little disappointed when I learned from the Author’s Note at the
end of the book that some of the characters I had taken to were actually not
real, only figments of the author’s imagination. As for the writing, I have to say that I am
completely in awe of Greenwood’s skill – the prose she used in telling the
story is beautifully rendered, almost lyrical in some places, flows well, and
is incredibly atmospheric. After
I finished the book, I went online and found the HazLitt article that Greenwood
mentioned in the Author’s Note (link to the article is here for those interested:
https://hazlitt.net/longreads/real-lolita)
and after reading the article, I am blown away by how well Greenwood was able
to incorporate all those real-life details with the fictional elements of her
story so seamlessly -- resulting in a retelling that is poignant, convincing,
and comes across absolutely authentic!
The HazLitt article mentions some of the abduction /
captivity cases that occurred in recent years (Elizabeth Smart, Jaycee Dugard,
Colleen Stan, etc.) and the fact that the victims in those cases “published or will publish books about their
long-running ordeals. They can tell
their stories the way they wish and when they choose, and attempt to make
something meaningful of their lives.
Sally Horner did not have that choice.” Now, through Greenwood’s beautifully written novel,
Sally can finally get the chance to tell her story – for me, this is a little bit
of solace given the heartbreakingly tragic life that this brave girl
endured. This is another unforgettable story
that I know will stay with me for a long time to come.
Received ARC from
St. Martin’s Press via NetGalley
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