Frenzy for the Twilight saga is sweeping the nation, and with the movie coming out this Friday, the only thing that seemed appropriate is to spend this week celebrating the books! I know some of you out there are thinking, uh… isn’t that a series for tweens or teens? I’m going to argue absolutely not, or at least it’s not just for the younger crowd. Twilight is an amazingly personal account of seventeen year old Bella Swan’s life at a new school, a new life, and new love.
Can you remember the first day of class at a new school, whether it was just moving from middle school to high school or moving from one side of the country to another? Now imagine if you’re the awkward Bella Swan, who never really fit in at home, for whom moving to a new school could be very challenging. What she never expected was to have the young men falling over themselves to win her attention or that she would find that the one that seemed to like her the least was the one she was most attracted to. This is a typical high school dilemma, but for Bella it’s not that simple. Her high school crush is a vampire.
Twilight is told from Bella’s perspective and at times reads like a diary. No personal thoughts are censored. Any young girl could relate to her, as the thoughts running through her head are natural and easy to understand. I would say that this is the reason the story is so popular. Vampires aside, Bella is completely relatable. Whether or not you’d be willing to make the sacrifices necessary to stay with a vampire love, I think everyone has longed for that true love and knows the feeling or has dreamt of the feeling that you would do anything for that one other person.
Bella discovers the secret behind Edward, even as he tries his hardest to avoid her, going so far as to try and change his schedule, and she is more drawn to him than ever. In the end, they cannot avoid each other, and after tricking young Jacob Black, a friend of the family, she finally discovers not only what Edward is, but also what the rest of the Cullens are. While discovering that you go to school with vampires might be frightening to most, Bella is unswayed in this knowledge. Despite all of Edward’s warnings they begin a romance that rings true to the readers.
It is easy to see why so many people are going crazy over these books. Twilight was a completely engaging read, and I finished it within a day. From what I head from other Twilight enthusiasts, this is practically the norm, whether you’re Bella’s age or younger and can see it through her eyes or an adult understanding what Bella was feeling because you felt similar feelings and emotions (I don’t think anyone else fell in love with a vampire exactly). It’s easy to understand what Bella is going through, and in a first person narrative that is absolutely the most important thing.
The story is absolutely engaging, emotional, and enthralling. I would recommend this more for women than men, but that does not mean a guy couldn’t really enjoy it. There is the love story, but there’s also danger and suspense. While I only read it two weeks ago, I’m almost tempted to reread it. It really sparks the imagination and allows you to truly live vicariously through Bella. This book gets a 5 out of 5 from me.
