Twilight by stephenie Meyer

Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
Young Adult Fantasy Novel
ISBN: 0-316-16017-2
498 pp.
Suitable for 12+

Readers Connotation: Seventeen-year-old Isabella moves to Forks, Washington, to live with her father while befriending mysterious Edward Cullen.

Plot Summary: Isabella (Bella) Swan used to live in Phoenix with her mother but she is basically forced to live with her father in Forks, Washington while her mom goes with her new husband to Florida for a short while. In Forks, shy Bella amazingly makes some friends and some boys even ask her out. However, after Bella's hates the mysterious Edward Cullen after he saves her life and disappears for a few days, they embark on a relationship that blooms into love. They learn about each others lives but Edward's is much more unique; he is a vampire. But he doesn't want to be one anymore but a regular person like Bella, which attracts him to her, not to mention her blood and scent. Eventually, Bella meets Edward's foster family, a family of vampires as well. But when vampire trackers want to hunt Bella for game, Edward must not only save her from them but save her family and convince her to stay in Forks. Will she stay for love or will she leave for Florida and start afresh.

Critical Evaluation: This story is not action orientated at all but rather relies on description. There is quite a bit of exposition but this being the first book of the series; it seems fitting. The vocabulary has such a wide spectrum that you can see the town, smell the weather, and see the emotion and love between Bella and Edward. It is between human and vampire, which is a forbidden love. He loves her but thirsts for her blood. That is the attraction of this novel, not the action sequences though vampires playing baseball was an original part. By the end, it's almost as if you've met Edward and his icy stare and Bella and her clumsiness; that's how well they are developed. Even the minor characters such as Charlie and Edwards foster family are well-developed where you can visualize Charlie's lack of emotions and Edward's family's closeness. The location of Washington fits perfectly as its cloudy, rainy, and mysterious. Add to the mix of vampires in an original light, it is no surprise that this book has turned into a cultural phenomenon.

Author: Stephenie Meyer was born in 1973. She graduated from Brigham Young University with a degree in English literature. The book Twilight came to her in a dream and it was published in 2005. The success of the novel was so grand that it eventually evolved into a series as New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn came out subsequently.

Meyer's other works include Prom Nights From Hell and The Host, an adult sci-fi novel. To promote her adult work, she produced a clothing line of T-shirts and skateboards. In 2010, Meyer wrote a 200 page novella, The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner.


Booktalking Ideas:
1) Vampires
2) High School
3) Divorce
4) Forbidden Love

Challenge Issues:
There are no major challenge issues present in this book.

Why Included: I used this project as an excuse to see what the hoopla was about this book. I think one book is enough, quite honestly.