Okay, its been a while since my last post. Where I left off, in 1st John, well, its not exactly where I am going to pick up again. I did finish reading that and I am not dropping it from discussion, just merely picking up another one.
So, you have seen the Twilight craze. The addiction to these novels and movies peaked my curiosity in the strangest way. No, I wasn’t craving human blood or Edward Cullen, and it was not that I had a burning desire to read the novels for the sake of vampires at all, really, but really, it was more of a ‘what is this all about’ sort of reaction. So, I reserved the first book at the library and tried not to over think what I was doing, or set my hopes too high or too low.
Wait a minute though. Before I even get into the books, let me just address something. The fact of the matter is that the vampire hype these books have created is nothing new under the sun. While some may look at Twihards super critically, I would suggest they look at ANYTHING that has created a kafuffle- think about the big celebrities, iconic sports teams, Harry Potter, Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus, etc, those are just the few that pop in my head I apologize that those are lame examples too). The truth is that the world craves a new thought, anything different from the ‘norm’. The world has a hungry appetite and Stephenie Meyer has successfully fed it a hearty course. The ironic thing is that there is nothing new about vampires. Vampires trace back to ancient Egypt, and Hollywood, of course made Dracula (Prince Vlad, an actual historical figure) famous. Who was this devastatingly handsome, and mysterious figure, and why were people (women in particular) so drawn to someone who could easily end their lives? Just a hypothetical question of course, and I am not going to spend time writing about the history of vampirism. But Stephenie Meyer has taken something that should be unapproachable and evil into something that can be good.
Face value, while Stephenie Meyer is a good writer, her writing isn’t quality. but that doesn’t seem to matter much these days. Her skill lies in vivid description. I have a friend who calls it her ‘crack’ addiction. The books were, admittedly, hard to put down, but not because she is a good writer. Its the content matter she has chosen.
Like I said earlier, Ms. Meyer has taken something that should be evil and disgusting, a vampire (defined as a preternatural being, commonly believed to be a reanimated corpse, that is said to suck the blood of sleeping persons at night). But that definition does not apply to ALL vampires, as we see in these books. Oh, now I get you. A vegetarian vampire. Suddenly, the world is not so dark, and the vampire is more like a hero than a fiend. But I digress . . .
Bella, our heroine, is a quiet and moody teenager, who chooses to live with her Dad. It is no coincidence that she has moved from one of the sunniest and warmest states to one of the dreariest and rainiest. It is no coincidence that this is a perfectly set-up situation – normal girl from broken home. The scene is set for something amazing to happen. Because something amazing has to happen, right? I mean, how boring to be a normal teenager. And Bella Swan thinks that. How boring life is, going to a mediocre (at best) highschool, and trying to fit in. And, (we will get to this later) how boring to be human.
And then she is struck by beautiful vampires. Everything disappears and the Cullen family comes into focus; Emmett, Rosalie, Jasper, Alice and, *hold your breath* Edward. Oh, beautiful Edward. The handsomest of them all. Meyer’s descriptions fit the Hollywood actor/actress mold to a tea. Gorgeous, with the perfect bod. Well, besides the fact that the Cullens have ‘liquid gold eyes’, ‘marble skin – very pale, and it sparkles in the sunlight’. Oh yeah, and they are vampires.
Sure sucks to be a human 
