And if you don’t know who those characters are, stop reading now! Clearly, you aren’t well enough to be on-line as you must have been in a coma the last couple of years. Go take a pill! Go work on recovering your memory!
I am talking, of course, about the three stars of Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight Series. Today I am (rather bravely, I think), putting forward my case on the respected bibliophile’s site, Vulpes Libris, So, please, any of you who have loved the series as much as I have, take a look; back me up; I might need all the help I can get!
Why? Because, like so many commercially successful novelists, Meyer has been much maligned – regarding the quality of her writing, the quality of her characters, her motives for writing these stories. Even the Vatican has added its criticism. Yet, not for years, have I sped through such a serial, reading late into the night. Vampires? Werewolves? With a good dose of unrequited love? What more could a girl want? Ah yes, I know – Robert Pattinson cast as the hero when the book finally made it to film.
So, do take a look at the arguments in my article, and this one , posted by Eve Harvey on Vulpes, earlier in the year. In it, she explains why she "hates" Twilight.
Which side do you take? And haven’t we been here before with Dan Brown and JK Rowling?
I am talking, of course, about the three stars of Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight Series. Today I am (rather bravely, I think), putting forward my case on the respected bibliophile’s site, Vulpes Libris, So, please, any of you who have loved the series as much as I have, take a look; back me up; I might need all the help I can get!
Why? Because, like so many commercially successful novelists, Meyer has been much maligned – regarding the quality of her writing, the quality of her characters, her motives for writing these stories. Even the Vatican has added its criticism. Yet, not for years, have I sped through such a serial, reading late into the night. Vampires? Werewolves? With a good dose of unrequited love? What more could a girl want? Ah yes, I know – Robert Pattinson cast as the hero when the book finally made it to film.
So, do take a look at the arguments in my article, and this one , posted by Eve Harvey on Vulpes, earlier in the year. In it, she explains why she "hates" Twilight.
Which side do you take? And haven’t we been here before with Dan Brown and JK Rowling?
23 comments:
I must admit to having no interest in reading vampire books - just not my thing. So I can't take a side - unlike all those people who are happy to slam Dan Brown without ever having read a page of his books!
Hmm, quite.
They are the first vampire books i have ever read, Bernadette. I'd say the story was more of a romance, than anything else.
Enjoyed your post on Vulpes, Sam. I'm another who's never read the books or watched the movie, but it sounds as if Meyer is basically a really good storyteller, as opposed to a really good writer. Good writers aren't always good storytellers, either.
Susiex
Thanks Susie, and very good point, i agree with you.
I have little interest in vampire stories or this kind of genre fiction . . . but I tore through these after my teenage daughter read (and loved) them. I can't quite pin down their appeal, but I couldn't put them down either.
Oh dear I just can't get into this Twilight thing at all, Sam. I even fell asleep during the film!
Glad you're connecting with them anyway!
I'll direct my mini rant over there :)
I did find the movie slow as a very slow thing, I must say, even though I quite enjoyed the first couple of books.
I find RP's attraction baffling. But then I am about four times older than his target audience!
Our experience sounds very similar, Bee.
Fell asleep, Gillian?!! WEll don't see New Moon then - that really is slow, great for fans like me but not really anyone else.
Hmm, RP doesn't really do it for me out of character, Caroline. I must have a secret fetish for 109 yr old bloodsuckers...
I'm guessing this isn't Bram Stoker fan fiction! I read Eve's piece and found it lively and thought-provoking. I think it's hard to look at any novel objectively; the instinct to filter, according to our experiences and preconceptions, is part of what makes us writers. Actually, marketing bandwagon aside, I'd be interested to know why writers think that vampire stories are so popular at the moment - what do they say about the world at large?
I don't know, Derek - is it just the next passing genre or could it be that during the recession, readers seek more fantasy to escape the hum-drum of a hard life?
I guess some might say vampire fiction has always been popular, it's just been sexed up over recent years and gained even wider appeal.
I read that Angels, guardian or otherwise, are set to be the next big trend. I think we could all do with one of them...
Yes, I really, really must read those books. Of course it's possible to be sniffy about the literary credentials of popular authors but there's room for all sorts in the world. Besides, they have to be better written than Stoker's original!
I agree that there is room for all sorts, from the very lit'ry through to the dead crappily written. But, must admit, feel very unconfortable about Twilight having read Eve's review.
Have got to the stage, though, where I can't really keep saying that without reading it for myself.
Yes, Simon and Poppy, you really must read them!
But Poppy, those are only the views of one person (unless you have read the 133 comments:))I read the books and - along with millions of other people - had a totally different take on them.
I sometimes think too much is read into literature. I loved Enid Blyton as a child but they are sneered at nowadays, having been picked to pieces and anaylsed.
Whatever happend to good old-fashioned storytelling.
Rant over:)
Oh, dear. Well, having read Lucy Mangan on the subject I'll be passing on this one. It sounds like everything I hate.
I am a huge fan of the Twilight series too. It is one of the most moving love stories I have known, and somehow by watching the films and reading the books we can get so drawn into those intense feelings. Bellas Depression, and the way that is portrayed..really reaches inside us doesn't it, and draws something from us . I have never known a series of books that has got teenagers appreciating litereature as much as this ...and quoting lines. I find myself reciting some too !!
Well, i did read most of the comments a while back (yes, ok, i have no life). But, IMHO, Eve argued her case convincingly. Of course, as i said, i can't really give an opinion not having read it myself.
I loved Enid Blyton too, but for a long time didn't question, for example, the gender inequalities
I mean, as a child, i didn't question it - i took it as read.
Jem, i can never decide whether you and i agree or disagree more on things, LOL!!
Becky, glad you've enjoyed them as much as me. I've found myself totally transported into Meyer's world and i love it.
I dunno, why should we at that age, Poppy? I've got 30 plus Enid Blyton books in the loft yet was a rampant feminist by the time I was 13!! She never did me any harm, in fact far from it.
Well, i do remember balking at the idea that the girls made the boys' beds. But it's the more subtle instances of gender inequality that I think are most insidious, and can take root.
Sam, it's a healthy relationship, dontcha think!
I agree, Geri.
Hey, we agreed!
Sam I left you a message on Vulpes - great review I thought.
Its the old argument isn't it? The writing or the story????
Thanks, Fionnuala.
Yes, and it's always story with me, first. I've just got to achieve that, now, with my own writing!
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