BookTalk.org

I never did get into Twilight, the movies or the books, but I know a few people who have read the entire collection and seen the movies and swear that the books are better. By a few I mean exactly three people. My ex-boyfriend, my sister, and a co-worker.

I actually DID read all of the books, but only so people could stop telling me "oh it gets better as it progresses..." Which, in fact, it doesn't. If anything, it gets worse.

Honestly, this is one of the very few (if not the only) books that I actually hate. I won't ramble though.

I read up to chapter four of Twilight and I just can't read on. It's one of the few books that I just can't finish.

This is one of those books that just gets worse with each read. I had to look beyond the technical aspects of her writing, but when I first read the books, I was just looking for an easy read that would be a nice break from all of my textbooks. The story was decent enough, though by no means fabulous, but like I said, I had to look past her actual writing skill (or lack therof). Now, each time I read the books, they just get more and more annoying (I mostly reread them before seeing the movies). And her little mini-story with Bree that she just published is horrid.

As far as movie vs. book ... To me, it's just a matter of whether I want to deal with bad writing or bad acting. I have yet to see Eclipse, and I'm not going to waste my money in the theaters. Maybe I'll see it when it gets on Netflix.

My sister owns them all. She put them on my bookshelf when she was staying here hoping I'd read them. I made it through the first chapter. Whether it's a matter of fiction v fantasy or a matter of taste I just have not been able to get into it. I was unable to glean anything substantial from the first two movies and doubt I will ever take the time out of my life to watch the third. I'd have to be extraordinarily bored and it would have to be immediately available. That's just me. The majority of people seem to like it and the ones I know who are into it and read the books prefer the books. I'm looking forward to the next in the Narnia series though. I adored CS Lewis as a child and the prospect of being able to jump into another world captivated me so completely that these movies are impossible for me to not adore. Nostalgia. It would be a rainy day today. :/

Same here. My sister owns them all. I've read them all... I'm not ashamed. Much.

Zen, while I understand a lot of people didn't like them, I'm glad they were written.

Before you get hostile and such, hear me out. I like the fact that the series made a lot of younger girls read. I remember a lot of the girls from my high school who didn't study, read, etc. would read these and from there they would pick up other books. Granted, they weren't picking up 1984, but they were reading. From there it's a matter of taste to keep reading chick lit, or try something different.

Genocide wrote:
Before you get hostile and such, hear me out. I like the fact that the series made a lot of younger girls read. I remember a lot of the girls from my high school who didn't study, read, etc. would read these and from there they would pick up other books. Granted, they weren't picking up 1984, but they were reading. From there it's a matter of taste to keep reading chick lit, or try something different.

The same thing happened with the Harry Potter books - they got a whole generation to start reading books.


(Except Harry Potter is actually good. Teehee.)

There's no accounting for taste.

wilde wrote:

Genocide wrote:
Before you get hostile and such, hear me out. I like the fact that the series made a lot of younger girls read. I remember a lot of the girls from my high school who didn't study, read, etc. would read these and from there they would pick up other books. Granted, they weren't picking up 1984, but they were reading. From there it's a matter of taste to keep reading chick lit, or try something different.

The same thing happened with the Harry Potter books - they got a whole generation to start reading books.


(Except Harry Potter is actually good. Teehee.)

I agree that HP is worlds better than Twilight, though I guess anything that'll get kids reading more is a good thing. The Twilight Saga was okay, but I think all of the media hype just turned me off of them even more. I doubt Meyer had any idea of the cult following she would gain from these books, but just as kids have begun reading more due to her books, they've also started biting each other and drawing blood during their makeout sessions. Is that disturbing to anyone else? They are vampire books, so I guess I could see how the teenage fantasy can twist things to see drawing blood as some sign of affection. I'm a bit young, but if anyone was around at the time and can remember, did Anne Rice's books have such an effect when they were published? Granted, Anne Rice may not be the best comparison as they were definitely written at a higher reading level than Twilight, but it's the only thing I can think of at the moment.

There is a constant debate on if reading something terrible is better than not reading at all. I think if people read bad books and it gets them reading good books, then yes, it's a good thing. But reading bad books just to read more bad books.... I'm not certain how that mentally enriches anyone.

I haven't read Twilight, so I am not commenting on it one way or the other. But I certainly get the impression that a lot of those readers are staying firmly in the "bad book" level of reading.

Incidentally, just throwing this out there ... I think Harry Potter is kind of bad. *ducks*