Ada, or Ardor: A Family Chronicle

A complete, punch for punch magnum opus. Nabokov weaves the imaginative romantic images of Lolita into the evasive word games of Pale Fire and creates an incredible journey. His writing style always arrests me with it's effortless yet acrobatic syntax and rhythm but this reaches a new level. Truly one of the most significant works of literature in the english language, it is one of the most intimate depictions of love and inspires a realistic and revelational vision of age and time. I can't think of many other experiences that have both given me new insights into the nature of love, while at the same time making me realistically contemplate the end of my life. A book to be studied and reread for decades.