Pale Fireby Vladimir Nabokov
While Pale Fire is one of the most difficult books I have ever encountered, it is definitely one of the most clever and well-written as well. The novel at times can be dense and there is a high frequency of allusions (as with any Nabokov text), which will throw off some people. Pale Fire at first was a difficult novel to get very involved with and I'm sure some people will absolutely hate it as it is often a fragmented reading experience.
While Pale Fire was at first a bit mundane, as it progresses you will want to know how the story concludes. As with all of Nabokov's novels the text offers "aesthetic bliss" - being extremely well-written along with offering an exciting narrative. The ending is open for many interpretations and who the commentator, Charles Kinbote, actually is is open for debate. There has been a lot of scholarly work put forth trying to interpret this novel which I would recommend reading afterwards.
However, Pale Fire definitely is not a novel for everyone. Oddly enough, I would recommend reading Lolita before venturing into Pale Fire as it is a more difficult novel than Lolita is, as well if you enjoy Lolita (as I did), you will most likely find Pale Fire a brilliant book. Again, Lolita, like Pale Fire, is a novel some people will absolutely despise because of its morbid content.
Overall, Pale Fire I would recommend to anyone who is a fan of Nabokov or great literature in general.
