New Moon

I have a confession to make, and I am not sure whether it is laughable or pitiful. I have never read Romeo and Juliet. Sure, I feel the need to excuse myself from this referential faux pas by assuring the reader that indeed I have read roughly a dozen other requisite works by Shakespeare, but understanding Shakespeare’s timeless tale about love matters when reading Stephanie Meyer’s New Moon, the sequel to Twilight. After all, Meyer’s is explicit about the connection.

That said, I enjoyed this preternatural romance. Why? First, Meyer gives Bella Swan such a strong love-torn voice that I wish she could have both the vampire and the werewolf. And despite my woeful lack of Shakespearean trivia in this case, I am shameless to admit that in the 1990s I did gobble up the tales about the vampire Lestat by Anne Rice. That was enough literary reference to give me something to chew on. Finally, my most important personal motivation to quickly feast on New Moon is the anticipation that a half a dozen love-struck thirteen year-old girls are dying to discuss it with me as soon as we return from the Thanksgiving holiday. There is something gratifying about being among a community of young readers who are so hungry to share.

New Moon is adolescent literature, and not just because the heroine is a teenager. Truthfully, Meyer’s novel lacks some depth, and despite Meyer’s adroit skill of crafting a romantic reader’s purpose for continuing on, resolutions to Bella’s problems are too swiftly and neatly resolved. I also cannot help but to compare Edward to Lestat and lament that Edward’s inner angst about what kind of creature he is is not more thoroughly developed. The reader is not afforded the opportunity to deeply feel the agony that must lie in Edward’s conscience, what with the fact that he obviously must crave Bella on many levels. It doesn’t matter that Edward and his family are the equivalent to vampire vegetarians. It would be more gratifying if the reader could more truly feel from Edward either the void of damnation or the his sense of redemption of the soul.

These shortcomings are, however, easy to overlook, for Meyer’s does a fine job of building reader anticipation to continue on with the sequel. Right now, I long to know if and how . . . and what about . . . Oh, I am tempted to give away too much! That I crave to know more about what happens to the characters is the hallmark of a mighty fine read. I am only sorry that I have to wait until next year when Eclipse is available before I can follow up on the love story of Bella and Edward.

Myself as a young reader

I enjoyed this meme over at Lotus Reads, and thought I ought to give it a whirl. What a great reflective exercise!

1. How old were you when you learned to read and who taught you?

I don't remember the first time I read. What I do recall is lying across my parent's blue bedspread, one leg crossed over the other, my father and I reading The Real Mother Goose together. Actually, I probably remember this only because my mother has a picture of this moment stuffed away in a drawer somewhere. As for my earliest school days, I remember reading the basals about Dick and Jane. I never struggled. I don't remember learning how to sound out words. Reading came very naturally to me when I was young.

2. Did you own any books as a child? If so, what’s the first one that you remember owning? If not, do you recall any of the first titles that you borrowed from the library?

My parents were bibliophiles, and they made many titles available to me. I think that I owned just about everything written by Dr. Seuss. Put Me in the Zoo and Green Eggs and Ham were my favorites. As I grew older, my mother would buy me titles from The Bobbsey Twins series, as well as many from The Boxcar Children series. I enjoyed reading mysteries, and those titles taught me how to make predictions while I read. Funny thing, however, is that I have no recollection of ever reading anything from the popular Nancy Drew series!

3. What’s the first book that you bought with your own money?

When I was in the fourth grade, I remember pouring over the Scholastic Book Order forms Miss Singleton would pass out at school. Scholastic books were cheap, anywhere from fifty cents to two dollars, so I saved up and bought many. I cannot recall which I purchased first: Charlotte's Web, Sounder or Misty of Chincoteague. I loved stories with animals, and my sister and I would often re-live these stories when we played together.

4. Were you a re-reader as a child? If so, which book did you re-read most often?

I was definitely a re-reader. I remember staying up very late at night crying every time Old Yeller was shot and each time Wilber begged Charlotte not to die. I remember my fascination as I pondered Karana's survival in Island of the Blue Dolphins. If I had to guess which book I re-read most often, I would say it was Where the Red Fern Grows. Knowing where and why the red fern grew fascinated me. I think it must have been my earliest realization that literature could present the reader with symbolism.

5. What’s the first adult book that captured your interest and how old were you when you read it?

Saddly, I have no recollection of ever reading older YA literature aside from -- and please don't laugh -- Archie comic books! Mr. Seeke was my English teacher in the eighth, ninth and tenth grades. He loved Hemmingway and Steinbeck. I remember the hook I felt while reading The Pearl. I think it was the description of the way of life for the poor in Mexico and the bad luck behind the pearl that grabbed me. I could vividly visualize the scorpion making its way toward Coyotito, and I felt a strong sense of injustice as Kino and Juana's lives fell apart.

6. Are there children’s books that you passed by as a child that you have learned to love as an adult? Which ones?

Though I never read her tales as a child, as an adult I fell in love with all of the books in Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle series. I don't know how we acquired our first copy, but my younger son thought long and hard about her "radish cure," which cleverly convinced a dirty boy that it was important to take baths. I am now the parent of young adults, but even after all those years I think about Mr. Piggle Wiggle every time I catch myself with a touch of "interupter-itis"!

Twilight

It was two average thirteen year-olds, Nicole and Megan who introduced to Twilight by Stephanie Meyer. As I walked through the school cafeteria one day, I passed by their table, the table I like to call The Good Books Group, for the eight or nine girls who sit there seem to always have their latest novels close at hand as they eat lunch, connect and share.

This is the best book ever! Nicole proclaimed. Her eyes glazed over with the same pure revelry of a chocolate sugar high, she recounted how desperately she wanted to be Bella, the narrator of Meyer’s vampire fantasy. For her, Twilight was not just good, it was sweet mind-candy.

I ready the whole thing this weekend! Megan impressed me, for the book I held in my hands was almost 500 hundred pages long.

I finally picked up my own copy yesterday afternoon. Barely a hundred fifty pages into this tasty tome, I can see that Meyer’s debut novel is filled with many appetizing adolescent girl elements.

Seventeen year-old Bella, though neither athletic nor graceful, is beautifully pale, intelligent and observant. As a loving gesture to allow her mother to spend more time on the road with her professional athlete stepfather, Bella elects to move from warm, sunny Phoenix to a chronically dreary town in northern Washington where her quiet and emotionally distant father is the town sheriff. In some ways, Bella is a parent to both of her parents, thus making her a strong character despite her own self-doubts. Bella is also appealing because, despite her akward self-esteem, the boys in her new, tiny school stumble over each other to win her affection. However, there is only one boy, Edward Cullen, who intrigues her. Edward, as it turns out, is a vampire whose conscience waffles between protecting her from his own treacherous nature and his desire to be with her. Bella responds with teenage confusion and worry also as she hungers to understand what it is that makes Edward different, something that the other members in the community are not able to pick up on.

So far, Twilight is filled with mystery and sexual tension. I suspect that the next course will also serve up danger and suspense. Like Nicole and Megan, I will probably gobble it up and hunger for more.