Twilight, The Book this Time

Don’t judge a book by its movie. I know I heard that tagline somewhere, still, I had not expected it to be so true about Twilight.

I don’t go to movies and neither do I buy really expensive books. I go to bargain stores and just buy books I could enjoy without getting worried about the price or its significance to the human system of beliefs. I have enough of that in my weekly literature classes anyway.

But, I always wanted to own a Twilight book. I just never got the chance. The last time I went to National Bookstore with a months pay in my wallet, I was not able to find a single copy of any of the series.

I kept on hunting NBS. I prowled for an Anne rice book, the one which signified her sudden change of faith. I left NBS disappointed so I binged on my usual bargain hunt and bought a load of pulp novels.

Recently, one student debater in our club brought her Twilight book which she said was actually the last copy on the shelf when she chanced on it at National Bookstore. She said she’ll rent it out to pay for her Debating Club shirt.

I asked her how much she’d rent it out. She said P50.00. We had a deal, and I took home her book a week after and spent my Independence day and weekend reading it.

I loved the wickedly flirtatious and sensual Edward in this book. He was so different from the Edward that Pattinson projected in the movie. The only character that actually fitted my expectation was the pixie-like Alice.

And Bella in the movie is quite confusing and more obstinate than the book Bella. Well, she’s no damsel in distress, just a silly, physically uncoordinated teener wrapped around the spell of a magnificently dazzling vampire.

Meyer’s explanations about certain vampiric myth are now believable. It made me realize that to a writer, everything is damnably possible. I mean, no one holds any monopoly about vampire lores. And she went really simple with her explanations which removed the conflict of a hero that could be destroyed. (However, I am not sure if literary critics approved of that, anyway, who cares about the stuffed shirts.

The sentence structures stumped me though. The book started in a bumpy manner, what with Meyers really strange staccato syntactical patters. Her disjointed and unrelated paragraphing sort of confused me at first.

But, somewhere along the way, things went on smoothly. I am just not sure if she got good with her narratives or I got used to her style…desensitized so to speak.

Nothing can really compare with the complexity of plot and the smoothness of style as well as the sophistication and intricacy of characterization of a J.K. Rowling book though.

But, I adore Meyer’s sentimentalism and really passionately emotional tone. The feeling the book creates on a reader is quite daunting to imagine. The book grips you and plays with your emotionality and internal passions, not the logical and highly intellectual aspect of a reader.

It was a good read. I loved Edward and Bella and I adore the almost tingly feeling it gives me everytime the stupid lamb and the sad, masochistic lion comes in contact.

Oh well, it can be a good mindless entertainment for a night of pure emotionalism. And Pattinson can work on those wicked grins and intense stares so that he can really “dazzle” on screen.

But, I guess he had the intense- Edward part correct when he asked Bella “What exactly did you see?” as he challenged her about what she claimed to be his sudden appearance to save her from Tyler’s car. He was unforgettable in that.

And the wickedly playful vampire came out to play when he jumped on Bella’s truck and invited her to meet his family. He was also there when he made all those facial contortions as he introduced Bella to his family.

The sensual vampire was not in that kiss. Pattinson looked too pained there, but the grimace did not convey the longing. It makes one think that he has eaten something really bitter. His stares look more menacing than sensuous.

The sensual vampire was there in the end, at the prom, when they were dancing. At least, he came out. Pattinson had to smolder with sensuality and do away with too much grimacing.