Twilight - Love it, or Hate it?

[RabbitHoleLost]

Further, as with Eragon, there's the complaint that kids are reading this thoroughly mediocre writing. (and that's being generous.) and forming conceptions about books in general. Not necessarily either the author's or reader's fault, but it still happens.

I'm not seeing this as a fault, considering both series influenced children/young adults who wouldn't normally read to do so.
Ala my sister.
Who hates reading.
Who read the entire Twilight series in a week.
And who was then easily convinced to read An Abundance of Katherines by John Green.

I thank Stephanie Meyers for that, atleast.

[Helanna]

I just ducked into this conversation to say:

Nerd-o-Rama, I go to a high school FILLED with Twilight-obsessed girls. Not one day goes by without me seeing at least two different Twilight-related shirts or bags (Hey, in my tiny school that's a lot).

So thank you SO MUCH for posting about that "Buffy staked Edward" T-shirt! I have located it online and am currently trying to get enough money to order it.

Also, I agree with everyone that says that Twilight, although a literary abomination, is fine so long as you don't take it seriously and remember that it's aimed towards teenage girls. It's just that those teenage girls suddenly decided to latch onto it . . .

I really, really hate Twilight fangirls.

[Nerd-o-rama]

Glad I could brighten someone's day with an otherwise pointless, half-relevant post.

[tribble]

Twilight is like really really cheap seafood: it's mediocre, bad for you, and in some cases immediately dangerous.
Eragon is more like a Macburger: it's mediocre and bad for you, but hey, I'll take it.
series like LOTR and The Chronicles of Narnia are like Steak, they are delicious, excellent, and if cooked correctly (read: READ, not watched in a movie) good for you.
Dr. Seuss is like if someone found a way to make Brussels Sprouts taste like Peanut M&Ms. Delicious, nutritous, and fun for people of all ages.

[Zencao]

Twilight is like really really cheap seafood: it's mediocre, bad for you, and in some cases immediately dangerous.
Eragon is more like a Macburger: it's mediocre and bad for you, but hey, I'll take it.
series like LOTR and The Chronicles of Narnia are like Steak, they are delicious, excellent, and if cooked correctly (read: READ, not watched in a movie) good for you.
Dr. Seuss is like if someone found a way to make Brussels Sprouts taste like Peanut M&Ms. Delicious, nutritous, and fun for people of all ages.

Hey! The LOTR movie is the ham sandwich, hardly unhealthy, quite enjoyable, yet lacking the true substance of a proper steak :P

[Kane]

Dr. Seuss is like if someone found a way to make Brussels Sprouts taste like Peanut M&Ms. Delicious, nutritous, and fun for people of all ages.

Good metaphors, and they're all true enough. Just that the last one leaves you with a funny taste in your mouth if you are aware of the all the wartime propaganda Dr. Seuss made.

[Flame of Anor]

Hey! The LOTR movie is the ham sandwich, hardly unhealthy, quite enjoyable, yet lacking the true substance of a proper steak :P

Although I am a vegetarian, I seem to remember something about ham not being made from steak...

[Lord_Gareth]

I hated Twilight, for reasons that have been extensively covered. I also hated the LotR books. Yes, Tolkein did some fantastic worldbuilding - but he kept forgetting to tell the damn story while he was showing off that world of his. And the archaic writing style is completely friggin' unnessecary...

[Darklord Bright]

Wait... you mean Twilight isn't satire?

Oh good lord.

[Mr. Scaly]

Alrighty then, I'm going to play Devil's advocate and say that I LIKE Twilight.

No, I've never read it...well, one page or so and I thought it was boring as all get out with even the climax written in a wooden emotionless fashion. But there are two reasons that I'm glad it was written.

1) It's getting people to read again. So what if it's tripe? It's gateway tripe! If someone reads Twilight then the door is open to all kinds of novels.

2) Hearing about how people hate the books never fails to make me laugh. So in a way it's brought me laughs.

My sister for example. She read all four books in a week and keeps bugging me to try and read them. If asked, she openly admits that they're not very good. But, to quote her, "It's hilarious!" I think that says it all.

[Dervag]

1) It's getting people to read again. So what if it's tripe? It's gateway tripe! If someone reads Twilight then the door is open to all kinds of novels.

The problem is that there are plenty of gateway novels that are generally agreed to be better. And that don't open the door to domestic abuse as wide as they open the door to literature.

My sister for example. She read all four books in a week and keeps bugging me to try and read them. If asked, she openly admits that they're not very good. But, to quote her, "It's hilarious!" I think that says it all.

OK. That's a fairly healthy attitude, I think. Someone who can read them and laugh at any bits that are bad about them... that's not alarming. Someone who reads them and can't laugh at the bad bits, either because their brain seizes up with hatred or because they don't realize that something very wrong is happening in-story... that's more of a problem.

[RabbitHoleLost]

The problem is that there are plenty of gateway novels that are generally agreed to be better. And that don't open the door to domestic abuse as wide as they open the door to literature.

Yes, but for some reason those "better" gateway novels don't want to be read. You have to remember, those who are using Twilight as their start into novel-reading didn't like reading before. They don't think like us seasoned readers.
They don't think "Well, this is a poorly written book with two horribly conceived main characters", they think "Aw, its vampires. And love. Yay <3"
As for the domestic abuse, I think we don't give girls enough credit. Nearly any romance novel you pick up has atleast undertones of creepy stalking. Many girls don't connect creepy behavior in their boyfriends as okay because Edward snuck into Bella's bedroom and watched her sleep at night.
When girls say they want an Edward, they don't really want Edward, they want the romance. Its the same as when girls used to say they wanted their prince or their hero or their knight in shining armor.
They don't really want that, they want their "soul mate". Or they want someone as "attractive" as Robert Pattinson, or whatever his name is (obviously, I don't find him at all attractive...)

[Dirk Kris]

Me neither. Except that one time.

The only, ONLY time I found Edward at all attractive was when he is kissing Bella in the gazebo and it looks like it pains him. I was like "I want to love and kiss you so badly it hurts! <3"

That is all.

[Nameless]

Yes, but for some reason those "better" gateway novels don't want to be read. You have to remember, those who are using Twilight as their start into novel-reading didn't like reading before. They don't think like us seasoned readers.
They don't think "Well, this is a poorly written book with two horribly conceived main characters", they think "Aw, its vampires. And love. Yay <3"
As for the domestic abuse, I think we don't give girls enough credit. Nearly any romance novel you pick up has atleast undertones of creepy stalking. Many girls don't connect creepy behavior in their boyfriends as okay because Edward snuck into Bella's bedroom and watched her sleep at night.
When girls say they want an Edward, they don't really want Edward, they want the romance. Its the same as when girls used to say they wanted their prince or their hero or their knight in shining armor.
They don't really want that, they want their "soul mate". Or they want someone as "attractive" as Robert Pattinson, or whatever his name is (obviously, I don't find him at all attractive...)

So basically, a good way to get into reading is by choosing to read an abomination to literature?
Actually… I guess that makes sense, if you don’t like reading books, it makes sense that you might start off by reading something awful.
I got into reading with Darren Shan, which isn’t anything amazing but it does it’s job in a way. (apart from the Demons series- what the hell was that all about?)

EDIT: Also, didn't Rober What's-his-face say he didn't like the book or movie?

EDIT II:

Me neither. Except that one time.

The only, ONLY time I found Edward at all attractive was when he is kissing Bella in the gazebo and it looks like it pains him. I was like "I want to love and kiss you so badly it hurts! <3"

That is all.

Speaking of which, how was the movie? As bad or worse then the book?

[RabbitHoleLost]

Me neither. Except that one time.

The only, ONLY time I found Edward at all attractive was when he is kissing Bella in the gazebo and it looks like it pains him. I was like "I want to love and kiss you so badly it hurts! <3"

That is all.

I thought the actor was attractive.
As Cedric Diggory.


@ Nameless: As I said earlier, it worked for my sister. She hated reading, omnomnom'd Twilight right up, and was on such a withdrawal once she was done, I could easily convince her to read other books of merit. Sort of. They either had to have romance or vampires, and had to be kinda modern.
But that gives me a little leeway. Ala John Green (NERDFIGHTERS WOO)

[Nameless]

@ Nameless: As I said earlier, it worked for my sister. She hated reading, omnomnom'd Twilight right up, and was on such a withdrawal once she was done, I could easily convince her to read other books of merit. Sort of. They either had to have romance or vampires, and had to be kinda modern.
But that gives me a little leeway. Ala John Green (NERDFIGHTERS WOO)

Tell her to read "Interview with the Vampire" <333333333333333333333
*drools*

[RabbitHoleLost]

Tell her to read "Interview with the Vampire" <333333333333333333333
*drools*

Neh. I read it at her age, and I don't think she'd be so much into the ghey vampires.

[Nameless]

Neh. I read it at her age, and I don't think she'd be so much into the ghey vampires.

They're gay?

Actually, to be fair I haven't read it, I've only seen the movie...
But it's a book I REALLY do want to read.

... What? It was the best Vampire film I've ever watched... and the first time I watched it was when I was 6.

[Starscream]

Neh. I read it at her age, and I don't think she'd be so much into the ghey vampires.

Please. Even Lestat wasn't so effeminate that he sparkled. He could be downright badass at times. A fight between him and Edward Cullen would end after thirty seconds, when Cullen gets his hair mussed up and runs away in tears.

[RabbitHoleLost]

Please. Even Lestat wasn't so effeminate that he sparkled. He could be downright badass at times. A fight between him and Edward Cullen would end after thirty seconds, when Cullen gets his hair mussed up and runs away in tears.

Hey, I was a big fan of Anne Rice when I was younger. However, my sister is your typical teenaged girl, and I don't think she'd so much like the atmosphere of the Anne Rice universe.
It'd, like, disturb her.

[Nameless]

Please. Even Lestat wasn't so effeminate that he sparkled. He could be downright badass at times. A fight between him and Edward Cullen would end after thirty seconds, when Cullen gets his hair mussed up and runs away in tears.

I would quote that if my sig wasn't so long.

Hey, I was a big fan of Anne Rice when I was younger. However, my sister is your typical teenaged girl, and I don't think she'd so much like the atmosphere of the Anne Rice universe.
It'd, like, disturb her.

Yeah, I know what you mean. I book with good grammar and a thick story line can be scary to some people.

[RabbitHoleLost]

Yeah, I know what you mean. I book with good grammar and a thick story line can be scary to some people.

Well, yeah, that and, like, you know, the undertones of homosexuality(Lestat/Louis, Louis/Armand) and pedophilia (regarding Claudia), and the direct looks into suicide, death, and human nature your typical teenaged girl can't really comprehend.

[Cristo Meyers]

They're gay?

Actually, to be fair I haven't read it, I've only seen the movie...
But it's a book I REALLY do want to read.

... What? It was the best Vampire film I've ever watched... and the first time I watched it was when I was 6.

Not exactly, it's more along the lines of extreme Ho-Yay.

Word to the wise: the book is a bit dry, especially compared to the movie. The Vampire Lestat I thought read a bit better.

[HPsauce]

Speak the truth Nameless!
Preach it out to everybody.

[DamnedIrishman]

series like LOTR and The Chronicles of Narnia are like Steak, they are delicious, excellent, and if cooked correctly (read: READ, not watched in a movie) good for you.

No, LOTR and the Chronicles of Narnia are packaged as health food but secretly are extremely bad for you. Too much thinly veiled allegory, gender-related bigotry (Susan), paternalism, social-class snobbery and racism (Calormenes and Southrons) in the diet can lead to coronary heart diseases.

Also, the whole "It gets kids to read" only counts when they go on to read adult books afterwards.

[Nerd-o-rama]

Please. Even Lestat wasn't so effeminate that he sparkled. He could be downright badass at times. A fight between him and Edward Cullen would end after thirty seconds, when Cullen gets his hair mussed up and runs away in tears.

Oh they're not effeminate (fabulous, maybe, but not effeminate). Just really, really into each other.

[Nameless]

Well, yeah, that and, like, you know, the undertones of homosexuality(Lestat/Louis, Louis/Armand) and pedophilia (regarding Claudia), and the direct looks into suicide, death, and human nature your typical teenaged girl can't really comprehend.

"AHHHH! CHARACTERS WITH REAL EMOTIONS! It burns! IT BURNS!"

Not exactly, it's more along the lines of extreme Ho-Yay.

Word to the wise: the book is a bit dry, especially compared to the movie. The Vampire Lestat I thought read a bit better.

I'll defiantly get round to reading Ann's books once I finished the Dune trilogy, a Terry Pritchett book I'm read and the LotR trilogy. (actually I might forget about the other two books)

Speak the truth Nameless!
Preach it out to everybody.

EDIT: Twilight + Lost Boys =

[DamnedIrishman]

Well, yeah, that and, like, you know, the undertones of homosexuality(Lestat/Louis, Louis/Armand) and pedophilia (regarding Claudia), and the direct looks into suicide, death, and human nature your typical teenaged girl can't really comprehend.

And that's exactly why they should read that sort of literature, otherwise they'll never comprehend it.

[Cristo Meyers]

I'll defiantly get round to reading Ann's books once I finished the Dune trilogy, a Terry Pritchett book I'm read and the LotR trilogy. (actually I might forget about the other two books)

My advice is stop after Queen of the Damned. Quality takes a nose-dive around that point.

EDIT: Twilight + Lost Boys =

= Kiefer Sutherland kicking the crap out of Cullen for 24 hours.

[DamnedIrishman]

My advice is stop after Queen of the Damned. Quality takes a nose-dive around that point.

Speaking of nosedives, Children of Dune and beyond...

Terry Pratchett, on the other hand, just gets better as he writes more. The way that experience is supposed to work.