Let me just preface this particular review by stating that I absolutely LOVE Stephanie Meyer. I enjoy her books. I have read each of her books several times through, and look forward to reading more.
That being said…
Well, I finally broke down and did it. I read Breaking Dawn. Recently, I’ve been having major second thoughts about author powerhouse Stephanie Meyer, not because I don’t love her books – I do – but because I don’t necessarily agree with the message she sends her intended demograph of tween, preteen and teen girls; in every one of her books, the main character is an under aged girl who falls for and marries older men, starting families with them. Breaking Dawn was no different. Married, pregnant, and then having children, all before the age of 20. And to top it off, this new “imprinting” thing she’s added to the story, where the werewolf men imprint on their soul mate, even when that soul mate is an infant or a toddler. There’s something about that that just smacks of lack of free will to me, at least in the cases of the females being imprinted upon.
I don’t know if I’m reading too much into it. I just know that the concept makes me a wee bit uncomfortable.
Now, for Breaking Dawn itself. It was all right. A bit anti-climactic in the end, but the conclusion was satisfying for a series finale. Interestingly, the length of time between the previous book and the release of this book produced some evidence of flaws in Ms. Meyer’s writing. For example: her characters are poorly developed. I have absolutely no picture of Emmett, Jasper, Roselie, Esmie or Charlie in my head. This whole time, I’ve been picturing Roselie as a dark beauty until Jacob started calling her “Blondie”. And I’ve been having a difficult time finding where Edward’s “siblings” and “mother” even fit into the story. I understand the purpose of Alice; she’s the most well-developed of all the siblings. Here’s how I see it. Edward was first. Then Alice. Alice was lonely, so Ms. Meyer introducted Jasper. Carlisle made Roselie for Edward, but he didn’t want her, so Ms. Meyer introduced Emmett to keep her company. I don’t know – I just think the presence of the characters don’t play any particularly important role in the story.
Anyhoo…while I have my doubts about Ms. Meyer’s intentions, there’s no doubt that her stories are beautiful. Breaking Dawn is no different, and deserves the same consideration as the rest of her novels. I think I’d give it a 7.5 to an 8 out of 10.
On a side note, it seems that, although the Twilight series has been successfully concluded, Ms. Meyer has decided to beat her dead horse with a stick and come out with Edward’s version of events.
That being said…
Well, I finally broke down and did it. I read Breaking Dawn. Recently, I’ve been having major second thoughts about author powerhouse Stephanie Meyer, not because I don’t love her books – I do – but because I don’t necessarily agree with the message she sends her intended demograph of tween, preteen and teen girls; in every one of her books, the main character is an under aged girl who falls for and marries older men, starting families with them. Breaking Dawn was no different. Married, pregnant, and then having children, all before the age of 20. And to top it off, this new “imprinting” thing she’s added to the story, where the werewolf men imprint on their soul mate, even when that soul mate is an infant or a toddler. There’s something about that that just smacks of lack of free will to me, at least in the cases of the females being imprinted upon.
I don’t know if I’m reading too much into it. I just know that the concept makes me a wee bit uncomfortable.
Now, for Breaking Dawn itself. It was all right. A bit anti-climactic in the end, but the conclusion was satisfying for a series finale. Interestingly, the length of time between the previous book and the release of this book produced some evidence of flaws in Ms. Meyer’s writing. For example: her characters are poorly developed. I have absolutely no picture of Emmett, Jasper, Roselie, Esmie or Charlie in my head. This whole time, I’ve been picturing Roselie as a dark beauty until Jacob started calling her “Blondie”. And I’ve been having a difficult time finding where Edward’s “siblings” and “mother” even fit into the story. I understand the purpose of Alice; she’s the most well-developed of all the siblings. Here’s how I see it. Edward was first. Then Alice. Alice was lonely, so Ms. Meyer introducted Jasper. Carlisle made Roselie for Edward, but he didn’t want her, so Ms. Meyer introduced Emmett to keep her company. I don’t know – I just think the presence of the characters don’t play any particularly important role in the story.
Anyhoo…while I have my doubts about Ms. Meyer’s intentions, there’s no doubt that her stories are beautiful. Breaking Dawn is no different, and deserves the same consideration as the rest of her novels. I think I’d give it a 7.5 to an 8 out of 10.
On a side note, it seems that, although the Twilight series has been successfully concluded, Ms. Meyer has decided to beat her dead horse with a stick and come out with Edward’s version of events.
1 comments:
I am a faithful reader of your blog, and have commented once or twice before. I too like meyer, but am starting to find her... sticky sweet. Anywho, just out of curiosity, are you planning on seeing the Twilight movie? The trailers look pretty good, but I totally pictured Edward different. I have been holding out on this book, I was disappointed with the third one. But I did buy "The Host", just havent started it yet.
have a good day
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