It took precisely 2.5 days to finish the 498 pages of Twilight, but it only took 0.75 days for me to decide whether I liked the experience or not.Turns out, I didn’t enjoy the book all that much. And you know I’m going to tell you why…
1) I love the use of the vampire theme to explore the subtext of teenage lust. Although Stephenie Meyer set up all the necessary elements, I found the execution to be disappointing (see points 2-3 below). Of course, Joss Whedon did it much better years ago with Buffy the Vampire Slayer, so Meyer didn’t have much of a chance.
2) The repetition started to wear on me – and fast. Let me summarise things for you: Edward is impossibly beautiful, his lips are very cold and his chest is very muscular, also he averts his eyes a lot, has issues with anger management and shouldn’t be indulging in his feelings of Bella. Furthermore, Bella is overly self-conscious, has feelings of never being good enough, is perpetually upset about Edward’s reticence, has a jumpy heart, and is mesmerized by his topaz eyes. This repetition is tiresome and I never feel as if the characters evolve.
3) I didn’t feel any particular chemistry between Edward and Bella. In fact, her self-esteem issues got so repetitive, I started to ask Edward aloud, “Yes, why do you want Bella?” I understand why the story is so popular with readers – which Plain Jane out there doesn’t want to believe that she’ll attract the eye of a beautiful hero? But Bella is no Elizabeth Bennet, you know what I mean?
That being said, if Stephenie Meyer is getting teenagers to read more, I’m all for it. I don’t think I can stomach another volume, but I hope that her readers continue to enjoy the books for many years to come. As for me, I may go dig out a copy of Jane Eyre…
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2 comments:
Wow. I can't believe you think Buffy was so much better at the whole vampire/desire/romance thing. I found the whole Buffy experience awful and, well, ridiculous. But Twilight had me swooning. My heart was in my mouth for many of the more, er, provocative scenes. I had to catch my breath a few times. It was sexy without sex, and I am so sick of sex. Twilight may not have been a challenging read but Stephenie Meyer is a good storyteller with clearly developed characters. I tell you, this was a breath of fresh air which took my breath away. Finally, a teenage girl who isn't perfect, talented and has big academic and professional goals. Her whole life doesn't revolve around her social life and mobile phone. You are definitely missing something.
Rosey - I am delighted that you were so transported by Twilight. For me, as long as people continue to be swept away by books, then the world will continue to be a good place.
Unfortunately, Twilight did nothing for me. I'm not immune to romance - many books, tv series and films have moved me with their vision of love - but my lack of engagement with Meyer's characters made it impossible for me to give into the romance.
I'm going to chalk it up to too many books read, too many movies watched -it's increasingly rare that I am impressed by storylines these days.
But I will promise you to give Volume Two a chance - maybe I'll love it, who knows!
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