Cue the corny lit rose-scented candle, rainy afternoon and you curled up in your bed with a book—that image was me for the first two weeks of this summer, reading none other than the Twilight Saga. I know, I know, it is terrible and I swore I would never read the Twilight books, but after everyone told me that I needed to read them, I thought that I would give them a try. I was expecting something more like Harry Potter, which I never made it through, but instead I got something so much more…
Stephanie Meyer has a way of writing that really draws you in to the story of these characters. This love between Edward (vampire) and Bella (human) is so strong and since they cannot be together, it makes this bond so much more powerful. I was able to sit and read all four of the books in the sage within a week and a half due to the fact that Meyer is capable of writing a story that you feel you are a part of. Throughout all of the books, I felt what each of the characters felt. When Bella was crying, I was sitting here bawling my eyes out! I don’t know what it is but Meyer is able to make these books play with your emotions.
When I first heard about these books, I thought they were another sci-fi genre sort of like Harry Potter, which really does not interest me, but these books are really not science fiction. Yes, maybe there are vampires and werewolves but I found myself not concentrating of the fact that Edward and Bella could not be together because he is a vampire but instead it could have been any obstacle that was keeping them apart. These books are more romance novels and stories about friendships. Meyer is able to build the characters so they each have their own backgrounds but all come together in the end. The stories that she creates are so well thought-out that it makes you feel like you know these people or that they actual exist, but then you come back to reality where you are sitting in your room by yourself with a candle lit. I mean I guess we can’t all have Edwards and Jacobs in our lives!
I know that these books were not from my childhood but I felt that they affected my reading life enough for me to write about them. These books have really drawn me back into reading all together and into all different genres. Don’t worry I have shied away from the sappy teen romances!
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Don't be ashamed! I too had the same experience with the Twilight Books. They showed me that reading could be fun again and that not all reading had to be done in textbooks with a highlighter in hand. The Twilight books truly sucked me in and also gave me a new appreciation for reading!
ReplyDeletePS: I heart Edward Cullen too and was very upset when I had finished the books and no longer could spend hours each day in Forks, Washington.
I'm glad that there is finally a popular series for teens where the main characters don't drink, smoke, do drugs, or have sex willy-nilly. While I prefer for teens to have a chance to vicariously experience these very real topics through books rather than sating curiosity and ending up with a juvenile record, this is not necessary for every young adult book. I was a "good" teenager growing up, and it was always a relief for me to find novels where the main characters didn't feel the urge to rebel in destructive ways (although falling in love with a vampire could be quite destructive...).
ReplyDeleteStephanie Meyers grew up in a conservative religious household, and while she has fully embraced many aspects of mainstream culture (you should see her music playlists on her website...), she still is very strongly opposed to teenaged drinking, drug use, smoking, and premarital sex. It's fascinating that she has managed to write a whole town of extremely believable teenagers without any mention of drugs or alcohol, and to do so discretely. Did anyone notice the lack of vices?