Reflection's Edge

Book Review: Twilight, by Stephenie Meyer

Reviewer: Sharon Dodge

Bella is a high school student who has grudgingly transferred her life from Phoenix with her mother to the cloudiest city in the U.S. to live with her father. Capable and academically savvy, she quickly finds herself getting herself noticed by all the boys - including the vampire Edward, who begins rescuing her with alarming regularly. As their romance develops, problems descend - most notably in the form of less family-friendly vampires, who find Bella a very tempting dish. A young adult novel.

Twilight, from the start, requires a fair amount of suspension of disbelief. Vampires, sure; but vampires forever going to high school? What are they, crazy? It's a problem that highlights a tension seen throughout the novel, which seems torn between young adult realism and delicious wish-fullfilment. Certainly it's hard to fully believe in a heroine who is so clumsy she can barely walk a straight line, yet effortlessly glides through academics and has half the boys in high school after her, all while making it home in time to make her Dad (whom she calls Charlie) a square meal.

It's the rather myopic teenage viewpoint which is perhaps the greatest weakness to overcome, despite its general charm. Parents in this novel are mere sketches, and often nuisances - more like pets that need taking care of than actual adults. It's also simply a bit odd to read vampires who act so wholesomely; despite encounters with some rogue vampires, the story is remarkably free of the mess and pain one normally associates with the undead, despite the occasional bouts of violence.

Still, it's easy to see how the novel has become such a hit; as Buffy the Vampire Slayer taught us, supernatural angst marries well with high school drama, and Meyer knows how to mix them. The outsider/vampire connection is explored thoroughly, as is the loneliness of estrangement from home. And while the predictable Edward and his high school drama (made worse by the vampire mystique) is entirely forgettable, the image of his vampire family playing baseball in a rainstorm at supernatural speed is arguably one of the more darling (and weird) vampire images ever created.

It's those little touches throughout the novel, such as when vampires don't burn in the sun, but rather, their supernatural beauty becomes too obvious, or the heroine's admittedly refreshing ability to run her life in an orderly fashion, that keep the novel fresh. While it never quite makes it to addictive, there's certainly enough life in it to recommend to vampire lovers, or anyone who enjoys a good young adult high school romance.

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If you liked this book, check out:

A Kiss of Shadows, by Laurell K. Hamilton

Guilty Pleasures, by Laurell K. Hamilton

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, by J. K. Rowling

Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the Complete Third Season (DVD)