Filed under: Beanstockd
Stephenie Meyer’s final novel in the Twilight saga is due out at 12am on August 2nd. Compared to the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by Entertainment Weekly, local bookstores have planned parties for fans to attend the evening of Friday, August 1st that culminate in the selling of book #4, Breaking Dawn. Fans being able to pick up their books at midnight not only means instant gratification (and a sleepless night), it also means bypassing packing materials that might not have been recycled if people had bought their books through online book sellers.
But, seriously, as important as Harry Potter? While I whole-heartedly enjoy Meyer’s storytelling (how can you go wrong with a juicy romantic triangle?), does that truly beat J.K. Rowling’s 7-book-epic of good versus evil? Just comparing the first books in both series demonstrates a gap in scope. In Twilight, Meyer introduces us to the protagonists - Edward and Bella - and spends 200 pages having them make googly eyes at each other. Then, at the very end, shamelessly drops in a baddie whose set-up has to be rushed through. Whereas, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone sets up an entire new world that keeps the plot moving at a steady pace, so the climax doesn’t feel forced.
Now that’s not to say that I won’t be at a bookstore at midnight, but no one messes with my boy wizard.
LD
5 Comments so far
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I completely agree. The Twilight series is certainly enjoyable, but it’s fluff. Fluff is fun, fluff is entertaining, but it’s not really meaningful. Meyer lacks the ability to ever do any sort of lasting harm to her characters, and because of that, her story is tame. Yes, there is certainly enough there to satisfy the reader, but there is no real kick in the gut to make any happy results more meaningful. The injuries to the characters never leave a scar. The books lack any sacrifice, and because of that, they cannot pass the threshold from entertaining to epic.
Harry Potter, on the other hand, starts out with a lasting emotional and physical scar, and just keeps on getting darker. Rowling realizes that victory doesn’t seem realistic or meaningful without some loss.
Comment by Maggie 08.04.08 @ 10:43 pmTHANK YOU. I’m happy to see that people are finally starting to see that this series isn’t all that its cracked up to be.
Comment by Matylda 08.05.08 @ 10:24 amI LOVE TWILIGHT and HARRY POTTER they are both great novels i REALLY want the next book of twilight BREAKING DAWN but i havnt been able 2 get it there all sold out!!! TWILIGHT is massive in america 2!!! Go Twilight!!!!!!!
Comment by Sophi 08.05.08 @ 11:45 amHarry Potter should not even be discussed with the Twilight Series. They are different. One has sold over 400 million copies while the other, by the end of Midnight Sun will have, 30, 40 million. BIG difference !!!! Harry has legions of fans, kids, both boys and girls, while Twilight only has emotional girls wanting a good cry and their moms. Harry rules !!!!!!!!!!
Comment by jon trubanks 08.06.08 @ 12:34 pmTwilight series and Harry Potter books are both great and enchanting tales. Having to spend quite alot of times reading these books, like the others, I kept comparing them to each other.
When I’ve finished the 4th and last book of the Twilight saga, I kinda thought- they’re both quite different to each other since twilight is a love-based action/drama while harry potter is about a boy who’s demonstrated more knowledge about those magic/wizards things. I’m not clear enough so… (for me)twilight is more of a teen and above thing and harry potter is more of a kids and above thing. So why compare them if they’ve got different targets? I don’t know that for sure but…
Breaking dawn was another page turner for me like the other books from the saga but I must say I’m a little disappointed that Meyer rushed some of them. It would’ve been greater if she hadn’t.
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