|  | Author: Stephenie Meyer
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
List Price: $10.99
Buy New: $3.61
as of 11/23/2009 11:58 CST details
You Save: $7.38 (67%)
New (243) Used (687) Collectible (5) from $3.48
Seller: abookarama
Rating:  4539 reviews
Sales Rank: 13
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Unknown), English (Published)
Media: Paperback
Edition: First Paperback Edition
Reading Level: Young Adult
Pages: 544
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 7.9 x 5.5 x 1.5
ISBN: 0316015849
EAN: 9780316015844
ASIN: 0316015849
Publication Date: September 6, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
|
| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 11-15 of 4539
 Twilight BOOK! November 16, 2009
Amanda M. Shipton
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
The book arrived in EXECELLENT CONDITION! Would definitely recommend this buyer! Shipping could have been a little faster though, but other than that it was okay!
 Flights of teenage fancy, anyone? November 15, 2009
Jitter-June (Santa Barbara, CA)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Where do I begin to write about the big phenom of Stephanie Meyer?
For not being a big fan of the mega-teen books in the first place, I have read the first two books. Not so sure I want to go any further as I get the gist that they are all going to be basically the same. But I can see how teen girls have gone gaga for it all.
Let's face it--we were all 13,14,15 years old once--and we know what crazy havoc has been done to our hormone house at that age--so to be truthful, all this fuss about this mega successful young author has the appeal to your average rock, rap, or whatever star. And, yeah, you better believe--sex sells.
Let's just be honest.The characters are flat, dull, boring and very predictably teenage. They sit around with not much going on except the impulse to get together with a juicy, good-looking, sexy brat vampire--who happens to be the cutest hunk in the class.
Ok..so we all like our secret indulgences. Actually, teen books are my indulgence. I love them. They are my pure escape into fun-land while my adult self struggles with reality's inescapable, in-your-face issues.
So on that note, these are fun, stupid books that whet the proverbial appetite for things creepy-sexy and teenage. The problem is, the TWILIGHT books are shallow and predictable. Like a big Mac or a Twinkie. Cheap thrills that go down easy. For its entertainment value only, I give this a slight three stars.
However, there are better, richer, more satisfying reads out there that both teens and adults would enjoy.
Case in point? The extremely readable and substantive, THE BOOK THIEF and the under-looked, hilarious story of a wandering cutie-18 year old, SIM0N LAZARUS.
Check these out, kids.
Good, bad, and fiction! November 15, 2009
E. Ware (Kentwood, MI USA)
Yes, it must be said that the author goes overboard with how beautiful the leading male is...we get it we get it, Edward is beautiful, we haven't forgotten, you just told us.
The beginning is a little slow, but when it picks up it easily keeps your attention.
On Bella being a role model- moms, calm down about this, seriously. She's not meant to be a heroine, she didn't beat some overwhelming odds and live to tell a valiant story of courage and perseverance: she's a girl in love with a vampire- fiction!
On Book vs Movie:
Book characters are much more intense, especially Edward, who seems too harsh and condescending at times.
Bella is a normal teenage girl with some self esteem issues "how could someone so beautiful see anything interesting in me?" but ladies, a lot of us reviewing this book are adults and we still have these issues, so this should be no shocker.
Details, details, details, I love how much more of a view you get into the story with the book vs the movie. I saw the movie first, I almost recommend it that way- so you're not dissapointed. If you're still hungry for more Twilight then read the book after the movie to get your inevitable questions answered.
I don't regret buying this book, and recommended it to my almost 21 year old sister in law who loved the movie.
 Won't waste my money or time November 14, 2009
jazz lover
1 out of 4 found this review helpful
Thanks to those who provided the cautionary reviews as I had no idea what the big deal was about this book, especially after Oprah gave it her stamp of approval. I was planning to buy a copy. Thanks to "TinaMom" for her summary and I agree, we don't need books glamourizing stalking boyfriends. Very creepy. Great perspective "TinaMom" changing the vampire character to a stalking boyfriend so those who don't 'get it' can see how unsettling this story is for their daughters. Also, I detest poorly written books with grammatical errors, weak analogies and nonsensical descriptions. 'Somebody' is making ALOT of money on this book.
Sparknotes: Twilight November 14, 2009
R. C. Bowman (Hatch-a-Patch, CA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
"Twilight"'s plot is simple, perhaps even basic: an insecure, slightly misfit teenage girl gets fed up with her mother (without actually being angry at her mother) and moves halfway across the country to live with her father, in a small, charming, albeit constantly rainy, Washington town called Forks. There she meets and develops an almsot instantaneous attraction to a vampire, though, at the outset, she doesn't know he's a vampire. Typically, that revelation waits until she is, in her own words, irrevocably in love with him.
Honestly, I'm a voracious reader. I love well-written books, but I'll never turn my nose up at a good, or even passable, story, either. I wasn't particularly impressed with "Twilight"--as most people can painlessly admit, it certainly isn't a literary masterpiece--it's really fun to read. Stephen King--recently notorious for stating that the author of this book is an untalented writer--once described a state called "the gotta". As in, "I gotta know what happens next." Even if you're not enjoying this book, you more or less gotta know what happens next.
"Twilight" has some good qualities. It's a fun story, and a salable one. I won't go so far as to say it's addictive--for most experienced readers, one go-through is enough--but it's gripping. As well, the dialogue, particularly between Edward and Bella once their relationship hits the romance point, is really realistic. In my experience, couples who get along do talk like that. This "banter" has been under attack in many forums, but I enjoyed it. Meyer has a good ear for dialogue.
Also, "Twilight" has pushed many reluctant readers into the literary sphere. This is in and of itself a great achievement. It doesn't matter how sloppily or amateurishly a book is written if it pushes somebody to want to read. All of "Twilight"'s faults should be forgiven simply on this score. (Note: for many reasons, "Twilight" is a jumpstart book primarily for girls. Boys usually don't like it much, though there a few exceptions, so don't rule it entirely out.) This is further proof that, even if it's not a great story, even if it's not classic or phenomenal or brilliant, it's accomplished something. Whatever your feelings toward the book, it's best to acknowledge that.
So, it's fun, it's easy to read, it's gripping, the vampires are sizzlingly hot and it makes you gotta know what happens next.
Nevertheless, "Twilight" contains a lot of points easy to criticize.
As has been noted, the characters are sometimes shallow, more fitting to a TV show or film than a novel.
For one, Bella is a disappointingly weak heroine. She calls to mind the static princesses of old fairy tales, who did nothing. Bella does nothing for herself. She moves to Forks, which, in light of her character, is a genuinely surprising move. In many ways, she typifies the "ideal" female: she's a good cook, she's quiet, demure, acquiesces to and takes care of the males in her life, and doesn't like doing things on her own. During one scene, she can formulate no way to save herself, although any sly, enterprising heroine--especially in a fantasy novel--should have been able to at least play for time. But no: she loses her head completely, so cowed she cannot scream, and it is up to Edward to save her.
Another issue with Bella: she does not seem to actually be in love. People in love do not generally soliloquize about their love interest's facial features. During infatuation, sure; but once you're actually in love, physical appearance takes a back seat. It always does. Reading angsty, long descriptions of Edward's face, every time she sees him, is not only tiring, it is annoying, and unrealistic. Further, some of the more purple descriptions of him read almost like a description of a woman: his eyes, his face, lips, hair-- what is described is androgynous, and could, in a different setting, be construed as female.
In many ways, it's almost as if Bella appreciates Edward's appearance more than his personality--which is unsurprising, as Edward's personality, while beguiling and enjoyable within the novel, is noticeably lacking.
Edward is moody and closed-off. Worse--in the opening scenes--he behaves as if he hates Bella. No matter how gorgeous he is, weeks of straight hate-displays will dampen anybody's passion, particularly that of someone as insecure as Bella. Even when he loosens up, his personality has no continuity: at times, he comes off as an abusive, controlling father; at others, like a moody teenager.
The sideline characters have no development, either, which is a disappointment; there was a lot of potential.
There are also plot holes. This always drives me crazy. I don't usually care if a plot is farfetched--I'm a scifi/horror/fantasy fan, after all--but it HAS TO MAKE SENSE within the book, and IT HAS TO TIE TOGETHER. This novel's plot felt patched together and weak in many places, nothing but an excuse to write about a vampire romance, which IS irritating. Character-driven fantasy is very refreshing when it's done well, but the character must be interesting for this to succeed. Bella is not very interesting; Edward is much more so, and even then, he's not spectacular at all.
One really interesting observation is the identification that occurs between Bella and many young women who read this story. Girls identify with Bella much more strongly than usual; whether it's because they want Edward, or just feel hapless like she does, Bella Swan seems to be the personification many girls want of themselves. I think this is another reason these books are so popular: for whatever reason, girls feel like Bella.
Ultimately, "Twilight" is a shallow story with shallow characters, but they are fun characters in a fun story that people want to read. So, Meyer may not be a literary genius, but she's quite the entertainer, which is just as impressive.
I had hoped "Twilight" would have a lot more depth, and that Bella would be stronger, Edward more of a person and less of a shallow fantasy. Nevertheless--to repeat--it was a fun book. So, if you're not-an-English-major who likes a fun story, pick it up. If you're keen on masterpieces or intelligent plots or characters, though, give it a pass.
Overall, "Twilight" is, in my opinion, worth a read.
Showing reviews 11-15 of 4539
|
|
|
