To Read, or Not to Read..that is the Question.
So it seems that there has been mass hysteria over the Twilight books and that I've heard it been said people liked it better than Harry Potter! (Do my ears offend me?) I'm usually a stubborn bull when it comes to people telling me things are so great...and then most of the time I am disappointed because of hyped-up expectations. (Although I was sceptical about Harry Potter, and didn't give in until the 4th book was out...I did enjoy those very much).
So, I feel the same way about the Twilight series and I can't seem to give in to it. However, my mother-in-law sent me her copies of book 2 and 4 and now I'm faced with the dilemma...do I search out book #1 (which would take me years to get from the library since there are 397 people on the waiting list to read it too) or do I borrow it from someone (since I'm too cheap to buy the book myself)?
The other reason I hesitate to give in to this "must-read" is because of some of the negative reviews that I have read about it. Such as people saying it doesn't stand up to our standards that we try to model and that it's borderline inappropriate for women to read, especially teenagers because it toys with temptation and deceitfulness. Although it may have a good story-line, I'm not sure I want to support a book (especially knowing it was written by an LDS author) that leads people to believe that you can dance around the idea of immorality, but not completely cross the line.
So, I would like to know what you think, if you have read it, whether you liked it, loved it, hated it, or are like me, undecided.
15 comments:
I am in the middle of book three and so far I think it is okay. I am not obsessed with it like everyone else. In fact I started the series in June and I am slowly going through it. I guess I am not the type of person that can't put a book down. So far from what I have read I haven't seen anything offensive. You should give it a try so you know what everyone else is all excited about. I wouldn't expect it to be "the best book ever" but you may like the story line. :) There is my two cents. If you want I can send you my copy of book #1.
I've read all four books, they were really easy to read, and I made it through the first three books very quickly. I enjoyed them, I'm even going to make Craig take me to the movie later this year. They aren't literary genius by any means, but if your looking for a fun easy romantic read then by all means - read away. If your a picky reader and only like classics or books with a lot of substance then I wouldn't read them.
I have read all four books as well, and on a scale of one to ten, I give them an oh, let's say 6.5 . They were, like Cherise said, easy to read. However, I tend to be kind of particular and picky about my books, and get bugged when the writing and dialog don't flow well, etc, and these books bothered me sometimes in that sense. I was disappointed in how she ended the series, and felt like things were predictable at times. Overall, I would say try giving the first one a shot if you can borrow it from someone if you're interested in trying them. I for one thought Harry Potter was WAY better as far as writing and storytelling. I don't even get why people are comparing these two books...they are apples and oranges in my mind! Sorry that was really long :)
Hi Melissa -- I just read the whole series in a week and i thought it was fantastically creative and wonderfully romantic. The writing is immature but gets much better by the last book, but it was written and marketed for a young adult audience so it's somewhat understandable. I liked the series much better than Harry Potter. Regarding the morality, Meyers has created the *perfect* Mormon novel: it's sex-free until it doesn't have to be anymore (cryptic i know, but i don't want to spoil the story!). It's fraught with romantic tension cause the two main characters can barely touch each other- what could be better? :) I think she's done a fantastic thing by creating an entirely moral world that is still sexy and hip. So, enjoy! Hope you guys are well -- we're still working on the adjustment to #3, how about you??
Ok, I'll put my two cents in. I have read the books . . . after I read the first one I even pawned them off on friends and famliy and even started a twilight bookclub with about 10 girls our age. I think they are very good books to discuss and we have had some fun bookclubs. Although I don't think the writing or storyline is amazing.
The more I read and the more I talked about them the less I like them. I don't think she is very good at giving a "moral" to her story (ie HP or Shannon Hale) and it has a very weak female lead character that is a horrible example to young women, etc. I have major issues with the book the more I analyze it. Esp the last one, ugh!
If I just read it for escape and fluff it's ok and worth one read. So if you're just looking for escape and fluff, do it. If not, don't.
I read them and thought they were okay. The plot did not pull me in nearly as much as that of Harry Potter. It's a brainless, easy to read series but there are definitely parts that i would have preferred she left out. Overall, I would give the books a blah rating.
Like everyone else said, it's *great* brain candy. With the first few I was sucked in enough that I read non-stop. Then again, I'm quite the sucker for vampire stories (no pun intended...lol). I'm about halfway through book 4, and got it the night it came out...so that shows my ability to put that one down. Then again, I've had a few things going on :-)
I see what people mean about not standing up to our standards. She seemed to be trying to build a more realistic world in that sense. She was writing it to publish with a mainstream publisher, not Covenant Books like the usual LDS fictions :-) There are swear words here and there, and the characters do struggle with moral issues. Whenever anything is brought up, however, it's done in a tasteful manner. She's not out there writing Harelquin's.
When it comes to my recommendation? I've been recommending that everyone read it, so I would say it doesn't hurt to start. Definitely start with book 1.
I'm not a book snob by any means. I don't go looking for underlying meaning or try to read into everything too much. If you find that you're still not interested enough by mid-November, make John take you to the movie and you can decide from there if you would like to read the series :-)
Hey Melissa - first off, good job picking a blog post topic that lots of people would comment on. Like you, I was curious about the popularity of the books, so I borrowed Rebecca's copy one afternoon at Lake Powell and read it. It was entertaining and fun, but I wasn't compelled to pick up book two to continue the story. I wouldn't suggest you buy it, but put it on hold at the library and read it when it comes in. Don't let Angela send you her copy because then you'll feel guilty telling her you hated it. :-)
As far as the morality question, this is a work of fiction, not the "For the Strength of Youth" pamphlet. Just because the author is LDS doesn't mean her characters are perfect examples, and I'm sure most teens are smart enough to recognize that. I'll have plenty of comebacks if Samantha ever says, "But dad, why can't I? Bella did in the Mormon vampire book!" If you're trying to avoid bad examples, this book will be better than 90% of what's at the library or on television.
Thanks for posting about this. I haven't read the series, and have only half heartedly thought about doing so. I'm not really into science fiction, although I am told that really has nothing to do with it. I read my fair share of cheesy romance novels when I was a teenager, and fear that they might suck me in and I might read them non stop and abandon my family. Blogging sucks me in enough I don't need something else sidetracking me. If you do end up starting them, I would love to know what you think.
Marci (Brown) (from high school)
Hi Melissa-
Well I have read all the books. It was an easy read ... I couldn't put it down when I first read it. From my point of view as a teenager, most girls love this story because of Edward and somethings Jacob. They picture him as the ideal guy, who sweeps you off your feet. Bella kind of reminded of me with the brown hair and falling everywhere type of thing. It is more Young Adult Fiction than youth, that is for sure.
Anyway, so as for the story line. I loved the storyline in book 1 and 4 ... 2 and 3 I wasn't too crazy about. Everyone is right about the whole moral thing. Even though it is by an LDS author, it's like those other books that LDS author's write about the church and trails, ect. It's different. The author is really not a writer, she actually started writing this book because it came from a dream and so she wrote her dream down and started writing Twilight from there.
So for the Harry Potter thing ... it has up and downs. Harry Potter had a more interesting ending than Twilight. For me, they are about the same. But yeah. I would give Twilight a chance but it's up to you.
I've read books 1-3 I'm still waiting to read book four. It's the forth book on my list to read currently. I liked the first book the seconed dragged a little and the third book was better. Personally I think it all depends on you. Now normally it's not my type of book but I still enjoyed them. Is it better then Harry Potter, not in a long shot. I agree with Rebecca that most of the teenage girls love it because of Edward, and the book matches the drama of emotions that most teenagers seem to feel. As far as the moral issue goes (though I haven't read the fourth book yet) It seems to encourage waiting til marraige without dismissing feelings of not wanting to wait. Which I think is more of a realistic way of looking at it. However that is not the main theme of the book but does affect the storyline. Overall it's not going to hurt to read it and you'll probably even enjoy it. It shouldn't be hard to track down a book from someone as most people own it.
I had a very similar dilemma. The book club I am a part of here in Texas read all four and had a fantastic meeting about it. I decided not to read because it is anti everything I believe in. Go with your gut feeling. . .it is usually the right.
My opinion is that the reason so many say it's SOOOO good is because it's romance candy. It's a super easy read full of lovey-dovey oh I wish I had someone who completely worshipped the ground I walked on with such magical powers. Honestly, not excellent writing or thought provoking in any way. It wasn't as clean as I thought it would be, like you said, coming from an LDS author. I would say you're not really missing out, but the histories of the vampires and wolves were the best part. I think you'll be fine either way.
lol So for what it is worth.. I am with Coleen.,. it is a good easy read. Clean and tastefully done, unlike other romance books out there that seem to delve into great detail on love scenes. *shrug* Take that for what it is worth. I like clean books and this series is that! If you want classical true to life, then dont read it. If you want to read it though,, you can borrow mine!! *wink*
I have not read one of them and have not been tempted one bit. Even when it was just books 1, 2, & 3 and everybody and their dog was reading them, it wasn't tempting. I love to read, but I have a very busy life and if I'm going to take the time to sit and read something, I want it to be uplifting and edifying....which is not what I have heard about the books. Then 4 comes. They suck you in with the first three, then everyone is waiting up until midnight, waiting to get the book with their whole Saturday totally taken care of so that they can spend the whole day reading the book....and....complete dissapointment. I joined our book club on this nights conversation because I was curious to hear what they had to say. Mostly all the same, didn't compare to the rest and those who had let their teenagers read them, didn't want them to read the 4th. So that said and done...even more than before I don't care to read because if I'm going to read 1, 2, and 3 and not 4? What's the point!? So my suggestion....save your evergy and time and go do something more worthwhile like reading the ensign. Sorry...was that opinion too strongly stated! Lol...love ya girl!
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