A 1999 article exploring the controversy behind the censorship of Lolita.  Chronicles its initial printing in France, followed by its two-year ban shortly thereafter, and ultimately its overwhelming success in the U.S. following its 1958 publication:

"Lolita" was an enormous success, the first book since "Gone With the Wind" to sell 100,000 copies in the first three weeks of publication. The lack of outrage over the book in America might be attributed to the tenor of the times: sex, and even teen sexuality, was 'in.' Elvis Presley was gyrating to the top of the pop charts and films like "Blackboard Jungle" were glamorizing youth and even juvenile delinquency. Parents were uneasy, but they had more glaring affronts to middle-class values to worry about. "Pedophile" was not a term one read in the morning newspaper. A cynic might add that "Lolita" is a complex and often tricky book, and that only the most fanatical Philistine, intent on ferreting out every incidence of filth, was likely to read it to the end.

Essay confronting the issues of censorship and morality.  Includes discussion of many popular, and (once) controversial books inlcuing Sister Carrie, Ulysees, An American Tragedy, and Lolita.  Chronicles many arguments against provocative writing, inlcuding: "How, sirs," asked the district attorney [in the trial regarding An American Tragedy] "would you like to have your fifteen-year-old daughters read that?"

Essay regarding censorship in film, with a brief mention of the movie version of Lolita and the controversy it sparked.  Although the focus is primarily on film, the author, Thomas Cripps, does a wonderful job setting the scene for the censorship mentality in the U.S., particularly in the 1940s and 1950s. 

Helpful student project with notes on the original book, its initial and subsequent reception, and a critical essay.

Brief history of the Penguin publishing house, including statement on Lolita and censorship: 

1958: Putnam publishes Lolita by Vladimir Nabakov, unleashing a storm of controversy. Banned by public libraries in some American cities—and officially banned by the government of France--the book becomes a best-seller. Along with Norman Mailer's Deer Park, published by Putnam in 1955, Lolita is a landmark victory against the threat of censorship.