Twilight (novel)

Twilight
Cover of Twilight
Author	Stephenie Meyer
Cover artist	Gail Doobinin (design) Roger Hagadone (photograph)
Country	United States
Language	English
Series	Twilight series
Genre(s)	Young adult, fantasy, romance, vampire
Publisher	Little, Brown
Publication date	October 5, 2005
Media type	Print (Hardcover, Paperback) e-Book (Kindle) Audio Book (CD)
Pages	498[1] (Hardcover) 544[2] (Paperback)
ISBN	ISBN 0-316-16017-2
Followed by	New Moon

Twilight is a young-adult vampire-romance novel^[3][4] by author Stephenie Meyer. Twilight was initially rejected by 14 agents,^[5] but became an instant bestseller when published originally in hardback in 2005, debuting at #5 on the New York Times Best Seller list within a month of its release^[6] and later peaking at #1.^[7] That same year, Twilight was named one of Publishers Weekly's Best Children's Books of 2005.^[8] The novel was also the biggest selling book of 2008^[9] and, to date, has sold 17 million copies worldwide, spent over 91 weeks on the New York Times Best Seller list,^[10] and been translated into 37 different languages.^[11]

It is the first book of the Twilight series, and introduces seventeen-year-old Isabella "Bella" Swan, who moves from Phoenix, Arizona to Forks, Washington and finds her life in danger when she falls in love with a vampire, Edward Cullen. The novel is followed by New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn. A film adaptation of Twilight was released in 2008. It was a commercial success, grossing more than $382 million worldwide^[12] and an additional $157 million from North American DVD sales, as of July 2009.^[13]

Contents 1 Plot summary 2 Cover 3 Awards and honors 4 Development 5 Publication 6 Critical reception 7 Adaptations 7.1 Film 7.2 Graphic novel 8 References 9 External links

Plot summary

Isabella "Bella" Swan moves from sunny Phoenix, Arizona to rainy Forks, Washington to live with her father, Charlie, while her mother, Renée, travels with her new husband, Phil Dwyer, a minor league baseball player. Bella attracts much attention at her new school and is quickly befriended by several students. Much to her dismay, several boys compete for shy Bella's attention.

When Bella is seated next to Edward Cullen in class on her first day of school, Edward seems utterly repulsed by her. He disappears for a few days, but warms up to Bella upon his return; their newfound relationship reaches a climax when Bella is nearly run over by a fellow classmate's van in the school parking lot. Edward saves her life when he instantaneously appears next to her and stops the van with his bare hands.

Bella becomes determined to find out how Edward saved her life, and constantly pesters him with questions. After a family friend, Jacob Black, tells her the local tribal legends, Bella concludes that Edward and his family are vampires who drink animal blood rather than human. Edward confesses that he initially avoided Bella because the scent of her blood was too desirable to him. Over time, Edward and Bella fall in love.

Their relationship is disturbed when another vampire coven arrives in Forks. James, a tracker vampire who is intrigued by the Cullens' relationship with a human, wants to hunt Bella for sport. The Cullens attempt to distract the tracker by splitting up Bella and Edward, and Bella is sent to hide in a hotel in Phoenix. There, Bella receives a phone call from James, who claims to be holding her mother captive. When Bella surrenders herself, James attacks her. Before she is killed, Edward, along with the other Cullens, rescues her and defeats James. Once they realize that James has bitten Bella's hand, Edward successfully sucks the poison from her bloodstream and prevents her from becoming a vampire, after which she is brought to a hospital. Upon returning to Forks, Bella and Edward attend their school prom and Bella expresses her desire to become a vampire, but Edward refuses.

Cover

Stephenie Meyer has stated that the apple on the cover represents the forbidden fruit from the Book of Genesis. It symbolizes Bella and Edward's love, which is forbidden, similar to the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, as is implied by the quote from Genesis 2:17 that is quoted at the beginning of the book. It also represents Bella's knowledge of what good and evil are, and the choice that she has in partaking of the "forbidden fruit", Edward, or choosing not to see him.^[14] An alternate cover features Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson, the actors who play Bella and Edward, respectively, in the film adaptation.

Awards and honors

• New York Times Editor's Choice^[15]
• One of Publishers Weekly's "Best Children's Books of 2005"^[8]
• Publishers Weekly "Best Book of the Year"^[15]
• One of the American Library Association's "Top Ten Best Book for Young Adults" and "Top Ten Books for Reluctant Readers"^[15]
• One of School Library Journal's "Best Books of 2005"^[16]
• Amazon.com's "Best Book of the Decade...So Far"^[15]

Development

Meyer says that the idea for Twilight came to her in a dream on June 2, 2003.^[17] The dream was about a human girl, and a vampire who was in love with her but thirsted for her blood.^[17] Based on this dream, Meyer wrote the transcript of what is now Chapter 13 of the book.^[18] In a matter of three months she had transformed her dream into a completed novel,^[19] though she claims that she never intended to publish Twilight and was writing for her own enjoyment.^[20] Her sister's response towards the book was enthusiastic and she persuaded Meyer to send the manuscript to literary agencies.^[21] Of the 15 letters she wrote, five went unanswered, nine brought rejections, and the last was a positive response from Jodi Reamer of Writers House.^[22]

Publication

Eight publishers competed for the rights to publish Twilight in the 2003 auction.^[22] Little, Brown and Company originally bid for $300,000, but Meyer's agent asked for $1 million; the publishers finally settled on $750,000 for three books.^[23] Twilight was published in 2005 with a print run of 75,000 copies.^[22] It debuted at #5 on the New York Times Best Seller list within a month of its release,^[6] and later peaked at #1.^[7] Foreign rights to the novel were sold to over 26 countries.^[24]

In October 2008, Twilight was ranked #26 in USA Today's list of "Bestselling Books of Last 15 Years".^[25] Later, the book went on to become the best-selling book of 2008.^[26]

Critical reception

Initial reviews for Twilight were mostly positive, with Publishers Weekly called Meyer one of the most "promising new authors of 2005".^[27] The Times praised the book for capturing "perfectly the teenage feeling of sexual tension and alienation",^[28] and Amazon.com hailed the book as "[d]eeply romantic and extraordinarily suspenseful".^[29] Hillias J. Martin of School Library Journal stated, "Realistic, subtle, succinct, and easy to follow, Twilight will have readers dying to sink their teeth into it",^[30] and Norah Piehl of TeenReads wrote, "Twilight is a gripping blend of romance and horror".^[31] Publishers Weekly's starred review described Bella's "infatuation with outsider Edward", their risky relationship, and "Edward's inner struggle" as a metaphor for sexual frustration accompanying adolescence.^[32] Booklist wrote, "There are some flaws here–a plot that could have been tightened, an over reliance on adjectives and adverbs to bolster dialogue–but this dark romance seeps into the soul."^[33] Christopher Middleton of The Daily Telegraph called the book a "high school drama with a bloody twist ... no secret, of course, at whom this book is aimed, and no doubt, either, that it has hit its mark.^[34] Jennifer Hawes of The Post and Courier said, "Twilight, the first book in Stephenie Meyer's series, gripped me so fiercely that I called the nearest teenager I know and begged for her copy after I misplaced my own."^[35]

Kirkus gave a more mixed review, noting that, "[Twilight] is far from perfect: Edward's portrayal as monstrous tragic hero is overly Byronic, and Bella's appeal is based on magic rather than character. Nonetheless, the portrayal of dangerous lovers hits the spot; fans of dark romance will find it hard to resist."^[36] Although the Daily Telegraph later listed Twilight at number 32 on its list of "100 books that defined the noughties", it said that the novel was "Astonishing, mainly for the ineptitude of [Meyer's] prose".^[37] Elizabeth Hand said in a review for the Washington Post, "Meyer's prose seldom rises above the serviceable, and the plotting is leaden".^[38]

Adaptations

Film

Twilight was adapted into a film by Summit Entertainment. The film was directed by Catherine Hardwicke and stars Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson as protagonists Isabella Swan and Edward Cullen, respectively. The screenplay was adapted by Melissa Rosenberg. The movie was released in theaters in the United States on November 21, 2008,^[39] and on DVD on March 21, 2009.^[40] The DVD was released in Australia on April 22, 2009.^[41]

Graphic novel

On July 15, 2009, Entertainment Weekly confirmed rumors that a graphic novel adaptation of Twilight was in the works. The book will be drawn by Korean artist Young Kim and published by Yen Press. Stephenie Meyer reviews every panel herself. According to EW, "it doesn't look simply like an artist's rendering of Kristen Stewart and Rob Pattinson. In fact, the characters seem to be an amalgam of Meyer's literary imagination and the actors' actual looks." EW magazine published finished illustrations of Edward, Bella, and Jacob in their July 17, 2009 issue.^[42]

References

External links

• Stephenie Meyer - Official Website
• Official Twilight Saga Website
• The Official Twilight Lexicon

The Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer Twilight New Moon Eclipse Breaking Dawn Film • Soundtrack Film • Soundtrack Film • Soundtrack Film Characters Bella Swan · Edward Cullen · Jacob Black Spin-offs The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner · Twilight: The Graphic Novel · Midnight Sun (unpublished) Related Film series · Scene It game  · Cast members Category · Portal