More Vampires

Monday, December 29, 2008

While waiting for the third book in the Inheritance series from the library, I had to have something else to read. (I'm still not reading Harry Potter again yet. I'm waiting until just before the sixth movie comes out.)

So, after meandering through my books, I decided to read Twilight again. I started just as I went to see the movie.

I used to have the definition that a good book is one that you can read over and over again, and the book loses nothing with each re-read. That you enjoy it just as much when you finished it the second, tenth, or fiftieth time as you did the first.

Clearly, I will have to work on that definition. Because I don't consider the Twilight series "good" books, as in the writing is not strong and it only appeals to a very narrow group of readers. But, I have to admit, that I enjoyed entering Stephanie Meyer's world of love and myth just as much the second time.

This time, I decided to also read the unfinished manuscript that Meyer had posted on her website. For those that don't know, Meyer started writing a fifth book, titled Midnight Sun, that tells the story of Twilight from Edward's point of view. She had sent unfinished copied of the work to several friends, only to have the pages posted illegally on the internet. Since then, the work has been on hold indefinitely. However, she created a link to the manuscript so that her fans could read the first part of Midnight Sun without feeling guilty.

So I read it. All in one afternoon.

Reading the story from Edward's point of view was amazing. It added such dimension to not just Edward, but Bella. I will admit, Bella is a character that, up until the fourth book, frustrates me to no end. She is selfish, silly, and manipulative. I will give it to her that she is only 17 years old, and thus "entitled" to act like a teenager, but still. She acts in ways to get everything she wants without sacrificing anything. Seeing her through Edward's eyes helped mitigate my dislike of her.

Maybe seeing someone (even a literary someone) through the view of love helps soften their flaws, as it does in real life.

Hearing Edward's thoughts created a character that, unlike the one Bella sees, has the thought process of someone born in the early 1900s.

I hope that Meyer decides to finish the book and publish it. I'm sure it will be well worth the wait.