Tags
humor, just for fun, murphy's law, paranormal, paranormal romance, stephanie meyer, twilight saga, Vampire, ya, young adult
I am proof God has a sense of humor. For as long as I can remember, things I mocked as ridiculous, particularly in entertainment, inevitably became my obsessions once I actually tried them.
For years I snubbed the Harry Potter books, certain that the feeble-minded masses who formed cults around J.K. Rowling’s saga must be sad little people indeed. Then about a year ago I gave the first one a shot and I suddenly understood why the series is so dear to so many even long after the end credits of the final movie ended. I now have a full appreciation for the originality, humor, wisdom, and emotion of the series and am now taking home the seventh one from the library!
Other things I have snubbed include cell phones, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, social media in general, books, romance novels, The Chronicles of Narnia, vampire stories, The Lord of the Rings, iTunes, the opera, independently-published books—the list goes on. Each of those things that I formerly mocked has since greatly enriched my life in some way or other (social media perhaps a little too greatly) and I am being forced to eat crow pie for all the times I laughed at them.
An inverse example for me is veterinary medicine. Since I was little I thought it would be wonderful to work with animals in a clinic. Then I had the opportunity through 4-H to try it. At first, I had a lot of fun. Then on December 23, 2009 (I remember the exact date, what does that tell you?), I had a fainting episode during a surgery that resulted in an ambulance ride and hospitalization. The traumatic ordeal lasted all of six hours, but to this day I cringe at the sight of needles. After that, between my inconvenient tendency to imagine just how scared, confused, and in pain an animal is and a few cleanliness issues, I was effectively burned out.
So how do I know I will love Twilight? Easy. I have been laughing at it since the first movie came out. I have participated in mocking it and pointing the proverbial derisive finger for far too long and the laws of the universe have thus decreed that I shall adore the whole flipping series once I do try it.
But my conclusion is not based on Murphy’s Law alone. From what I have heard of it, Twilight does sound interesting. Sparkling vampires are actually quite creative if one thinks about it and I am drawn to the idea of a non-self-righteous, non-bad-boy love interest who stipulates that he and his significant other be bound in wedlock prior to consummation. (Yes, shoot me, I am that old fashioned.)
This is not to say that I will stop my ridicule. In fact, that will probably not occur until after I’ve fallen head-over-heels for the books (which I am sure will happen). But I still think it perfectly plausible that Twilight will become one of my obsessions.
But first I have got to finish Harry Potter…
Inkspelled Faery 
My main reason for hating the Twilight series is that it’s seriously misogynistic. Young girls look at Jacob Black and Edward Cullen and see “loving”, “protective” boyfriend material. And that’s very, very scary. (Plus, the writing is crap. But that’s far less harmful than the former.)
In all seriousness, I would highly advise skipping those books altogether.
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Well, I’m not reading them just yet. I still have to finish Harry Potter and then there’s still The Mortal Instruments and Percy Jackson I haven’t touched. The thing is, I’m mystified by how everyone seems to hate Meyer’s series and yet it is a multi-million dollar franchise. I hear nothing but praise from some people, far more dislike it with the intensity of a thousand suns, and a scattered minority have mixed feelings. I think the only way to figure out will be to read it for myself. =)
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Not finished Harry Potter? Oh My! I think I’ve read the series 3 or 4 times! And I’ve read the Twilight series, loved it too I’m afraid. In both series I found the books better than the films, a clique, I know, but that’s my own personal view, enjoy your reading.
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I’m on the final chapters of the seventh HP right now. =D (Part of the late crowd, I know.) Twilight seems to be something one either loves to bits or hates into oblivion. The only way to find out which I am is to try them!
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Though I would encourage you to try the Twilight books, I personally hate them.
And I love a good book. The plot isn’t bad, but I have always preferred picturing legendary and mythical creatures such as Vampires and Werewolves the way they were originally thought of.
Mindless bloodthirsty killing machines once turned. So, as you can probably already tell, I don’t agree with vampires sparkling… XD
That’s my own personal view anyway – enjoy your reading and writing! Big fan by the way! 😀
I’m a new blogger and I just recently posted a short story which basically shows how I would picture a Vampire…maybe you could check it out? Hint hint 😉
Thanks!
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It seems Meyer evokes very passionate responses in her readers, be they bad or good. I personally like my vampires non-sparkly with a proclivity for blood and an inner struggle to cling to their humanity.
I’ll certainly drop by your blog as soon as I can! =)
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Elisabeth, I had a similar aspirations in becoming a vet when I was young. I had helped my mom deliver puppies, taken care of all sorts of animals including chinchillas, horses, iguanas, cats, birds, parrots, rabbits, guinea pigs, sugar gliders, dobermans & ferrets….I’m probably forgetting some species, but you get the idea (lots of animal experience) oh and I even worked at a pet shop. I was totally stoked to be a vet & specialize in avian medicine (hopefully raptors like eagles). My mom even talked the vet into letting me watch when she took animals in. Which rocked until we took in a kitten (we rescued) that had a throat wound. I was in the back when the vet said the kitten had a bot. I had no idea what a bot was, but it needed to be removed. All I can say is that it was nasty and I almost fainted. I tend to have this problem with all blood and wounds now and I have way to much empathy for hurt animals to be able to be a vet which is why I’m now a math teacher 🙂 and book addict 🙂
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A bot? Botfly? Yep, I wrote a paper on those nasty little suckers. Ick.
Like I said, it was the empathy for me. But working with baby animals is still something I enjoy. I bottle-fed a sibling trio of three-day-old puppies for a local rescue group right up until the little babies went to their forever homes. That was much more fun and rewarding than working in a clinic. =)
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I love this post! It was so enjoyable; you made me giggle!!! I absolutely adore both the Harry Potter and the Twilight books! Books are almost always better than the movies, but this is especially true with the Twilight Saga. The Host, also by Stephenie Meyer, is another great book with a poorly done movie. But the very worst movie to come from a great book was Eargon. Man, that was a huge disappointment! Happy reading! I look forward to hearing what you think of Twilight 🙂
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Everyone agrees the Eragon movie sucks rotten eggs. I saw a ten-second clip and I decided I didn’t like it. (Arya WAS NOT a redhead and DID NOT wear dresses when she could help it.) I agree that the HP books have thus far been better than the movies (they had to cut a lot out to make it fit), but I like the movie renditions better in many cases–The Hunger Games, Nim’s Island, and Inkheart come to mind. It may be awhile before I read Twilight, but I’m sure you’ll all hear my opinion, one way or the other. =)
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