Yes, I dragged my husband to Twilight!

And he loved it! I know, I know. I'm floored as well. It was my second time seeing the film and his first and he loved it. I have to admit that seeing it a second time gave me new insight and a greater appreciation for the film. So many people said Kristen was too emotionally stiff or that Robert was too cautious. Well let's see, a teen aged girl falls in love with a vampire. Shouldn't her reaction be one of uncertainty or his one of fear he might kill her?

Even after we got in the theater to wait, my husband Tim was reading the reviews on line. There were mixed. Some Twi-hard fans seemed disappointed, others downright mean. However, during the movie Tim turned to me and said it was wonderful, well done and great. He said it was a feel good movie.

Tim was prepared before hand. On our last trip home from Utah, I read the entire Twilight book to him. Often along our journey I'd ask him if he wanted me to drive. But he refused stating that he'd never get to finish the book if I drove, so I continued to read. It took the entire thirteen hours drive to finish the book.

I was reading on other blog posts about the movie last night and ran across several analytical compositions that disturbed me. I wanted to share a reaction I had to two such posts:

Have you ever read Harry Potter, Sleeping Beauty, or Hansel and Gretel? Come on people, Twilight's a fantasy! Not an existential expose on vampire morals and behavior or a teen aged sex manual and certainly not a treatise on Mormon virtue and morality. If every Mormon who wrote a book with only the Mormon audience in mind, they'd never make a dime and no one would read them.

One girl commented on a one of the many Twilight blogs that I frequent saying that Stephenie Meyer was out to convert people to our church through her books. Bah! I never saw any pass-along cards at the end of the book or the Church's 800 number on the last page and I should know, I've read Twilight nine times, going on ten.

For a book written primarily as a teen aged love story about a young girl that wasn't brought up in a Mormon household, it's very innocent. The fact that Edward insists on abstinence goes to his upbringing. As for Bella not being able to breathe when she's around Edward, obviously they've never been a teen aged girl. I was so stressed when I saw my high school football player crush, I almost passed out from lack of oxygen.

It's not the gospel according to Stephenie Meyer or a book to influence young Mormon girls to abandon their precious virtues in search of the perfect lover. It's just a fantasy, an innocent love story that neither teaches Mormonism nor denies it. It just is.Everybody loves to analysis Stephenie Meyer's books to death. Try analyzing the book "Everybody Poops" or "Curious George". I've always wondered just what he's curious about.

I find it interesting that one man pointed out that Twilight was full of "LDS dog whistles" and yet one woman said, "There is nothing 'lovely or praiseworthy or of good report' to be found in these books or movie". I appreciate your analysis and the moral drawing, however, I'm sorry, I disagree with both hypotheses.

The first thing a writer is counseled to do is write what they know. Stephenie is LDS, she loves fantasy and wrote fantasy according to her background. Nothing more or less. We're counseled to read out of the best books, that doesn't mean they're all going to be full of LDS doctrine, real or implied.

I think we should celebrate and rejoice in Stephenie Meyer's accomplishments and in her good fortune. She's brought a lot of positive attention to the Church, a lot more than Prop 8 has. We could use some favorable recognition right now through the good works of one of our more famous members. Thank you Stephenie Meyer.

Anyhoo, I just wanted to enjoy a great movie (whether it followed the book precisely or not), and feel good after an experience in the theater. Twilight fit both bills. It was a pleasure to watch and left you feeling great. Can't we just enjoy it at it's face value without pulling it to pieces?

Edward
and
my
Tim.
Cute
aren't
they?

My Twilight Review--LOVED IT!!

I got to see Twilight at 12:01 a.m. this morning. OME! (That's Oh My Edward, for those of you who don't speak Twihardian.) Anyway, I and my friend Dona, drove the the theater in Ventura, California and for a time didn't think anyone was there until we turned in to the parking lot. The girls were lined up around the corner sitting on the cold ground with quilts and blankets and lawn chairs. At first I thought Ugh! But the friend I brought with me is handicapped and she announced that she'd go to the front door and tell the young man that she had to sit in the lobby.

We parked in a handicapped spot, walked boldly to the front door and simply slipped unrestrained into the theater to wait. My friend and I were the first ones through the door and got terrific seats. Awesome!

What bothered me first thing this morning was all the blistering negative reviews of the movie offered dispassionately by professional but irritated and surly critics. Well, I thought, they're not teenaged girls or mothers or grandmothers of teenaged girls, so keep your negativity to yourself! I wanted to see for myself. And what I saw I loved!!!



















I can't wait until I can drag my husband or anyone else who'll go with me to see it again. It moved along so quickly it was hard to see everything in one sitting. It may take many, many times to see it all.

One of the problems with reading any book that's turned into a movie, is that you've already seen the movie in your mind. You know the characters intimately because they're creations in your head. That's how it was for me. I had Edward and Bella's faces pictured clearly in my mind. But I believe that Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart were magnificently cast in those two roles. I was impressed with the other castings as well, except Eric. He didn't have the chess club look about him. But Jacob--well he's just to die for. Can't wait for New Moon for him to shine.


I heard some Twi-Hard fans are not exactly crazy about the film. It bothers me. Could the movie have followed more closely to the book? Could there have been little things that made the book so endearing included in the movie that weren't? And could the sequencing of the movie followed more closely to the time line of the book? Of course. But if they followed the entire book, word by word and page by page, I'm afraid we'd have all fallen asleep before it was over and technically, it could have been made into a mini-series of epic proportions that lasted a week or longer.

Now don't get me wrong, I love Stephenie Meyer and her books. I've read Twilight nine times and her last three books four times apiece. You have to admit that Stephenie is quite verbose and tends to over analysis and describe things in excruciatingly long-winded detail. She uses about 255 pages to develop the relationship between Bella and Edward from first sight to the declaration of their love. Well in a movie--even a two hour movie--that's just not possible. So cut them some slack people!

Some might feel they were left with unfulfilled expectations and desired a longer love story. Others think the bad vampire attacks--which weren't in the book at all--weren't necessary. I've heard it described as you've been offered this culinary master piece of a meal that will follow with a fantastically rich dessert. However, you're not allowed to eat the dessert when you've finished the delectable food. So you go away feeling dissatisfied--even though you were well fed, ate scrumptiously and are full. There's just no way to satisfy everyone.

As it stands, I enjoyed my Twilight meal and thoroughly intend to eat well again. (I'm a dieter, I can use food metaphors.) It's just too bad we're not all screen writers, movie directors and producers. Well there you have it. So much for my professional critic of the movie Twilight. Go see it, judge for yourself.

You have to admit though, Robert Pattinson's a hunk!!!

Twilight--The Real Happy Ending

WARNING: If you have an aversion to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saint theology, please DON'T READ THIS!!!

"Breaking (The Morning of the First Resurrection) Dawn"

I have a totally ingenious (Latter-day Saint version) squeal for "Breaking Dawn". I thought it up all my myself. I should be knighted or something equally as grand, because this idea is so heavenly, so divine. I'll bet no one else could come up with an alternative ending to Twilight that is so perfect.

Anyway, enough self-gratification. Let me set the stage. First of all, Bella and Edward get married, we all know that. They have Reneesme, (silly name), she grows up, (in 7 years), marries Jacob (ew, sick), they start on their happily ever after. Well they can only go so far in their version of "happily ever after', right? Vampire, werewolves--no matter how long their live in "their" version of immortality, even they cannot survive a world that is destroyed in some cataclysmic explosion of Biblical proportions, right?

Well that's where my next best seller comes in. You see Forks, WA sits inside the boundaries of the Washington Tacoma Mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I could see the missionaries assigned to Port Angeles becoming very curious about the folks in the small town of Forks. I could almost picture their mission president sending his most tenacious missionaries to the area. You know the type, the Elder Kessler and his companion, (I can't remember his name from the Mormon show "Saturday's Warrior"), a real set of bulldog missionaries. These are the never-say-die kind of missionaries that won't take no or a door slamming on their double souled Bone Sierra Lace-up shoes for an answer. Like I said, bulldogs!

I can picture them now, trudging down that long road out of town toward the Cullen's cut off, eager, anticipating finding that "Golden" family. (Because they haven't had one baptism in eighteen months of hard labor.)

They aren't detoured by the long, three mile winding, fern over grown lane that is obviously impossible to find unless you were a vampire and this was home. But our senior Elder, let's call him Elder Moss. (That seemed appropriate for the location.) And his companion is Elder Green, (funny, right?).

Anyway, they're trudging through the squishy emerald green vegetation, being led by the spirit. They haven't seen another house for a very long time and Elder Green starts to get cranky. Well more like--scared to death. The dark grey clouds are low, threatening like giant bloated water balloons, so not only will they be stuck out in the un-godly green hell, they'll be drench as well. But Elder Moss is undaunted. He can smell the prize. Well he can smell something--and it's sweet!

After a long deathly quiet trip, they break through the ferns and into the meadow, or the large lawn in front of the Cullen's mansion. Stunned into silence, Elder Green can only gawk, his face pale, his lips red from biting them. But Elder Moss moves forward to the porch. There are lights on in the home and he knows people (funny again) are inside, so he's going to knock until someone opens the door. Elder Green is really that, by now he's physically green. He has a bad feeling, a terrible deep down, hair-standing-up-on-the-back-of-the-neck, fear. He winces and trails reluctantly after his companion. What the heck, you only live once.

Anyway, just as Elder Moss prepares to knock, the door bursts open and Emmett Cullen fills the doorway looking like he just found lunch, a delicious beef steak and a juicy pork chop. He licks his lips and Elder Moss nearly swallows his tongue. However Elder Moss finds his voice and prepares to give his door approach. At the same time, Emmett is ready to roll on the ground with laughter from the look on the Elder's faces.

"Hi, sir. My name is Elder Moss and this is my companion..." Elder Green is inching his way nervously off the porch and has one foot on the top stair. "Elder?" Elder Moss's eyes are wide with fright.

Elder Green freezes. Elder Moss turns apologetically around to face Emmett. "Sorry, he's a bit shy." He smiles as Emmett who looks back over his shoulder and laughs. "Anyway sir, my companion and I are missionaries for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and we've come to your home to deliver a vital message for your salvation."

Now Emmett roars with laughter, almost doubles over with glee. You know what he's thinking. Remember the whole "lost" soul thing that freaked Edward out. Well Emmett's not buying it. And by the time he's through laughing, he's not alone at the door. Jasper has come to stand behind him and Rosalie at his side, Alice under his arm. Elder Moss sees Rosalie and forgets his name, where he came from and why he's standing at the door.

"Elder?" Emmett grins. By now Elder Green has returned to Elder Moss's side and their eyes are glued to Rosalie's face. Emmett's booming laughter rings through the rafters, but he grabs their arms and jerks them inside. "Welcome, boys. Won't you join us for dinner?"

Well I won't bother you with the "gory" details, but suffice it to say, the Elders are very persuasive. The entire family listens to their lesson including Edward and the new and improved Bella. Jacob and Nessie are there, so are Leah and Seth and Charley and Sue. The spirit of the Lord permeates the home filling them the answers they've been seeking their very, very, very long lives.

Anyway, cutting to the chase, they all get baptized, even the Indians at La Push who are delighted to read the Book of Mormon that tells about their "real" ancestors and everyone's happy.

They explain to Edward that it's not the heart that gives the body animation, it's the spirit. And the spirit and the body are the soul of a person. Edward is convinced that his soul is saved and he believes the Lord will forgive him for his indiscretions while he fought his nature. (Of course, we can't know that, but it makes a great story, right?)

Epolog: A general authority visits a stake conference in Tacoma and learns of the major baptism of Elder Moss and Green and he wants to meet the La Push families and the Cullen families. During their interview, this man gives them a blessing and they're freed from their dark night of torture. They all become human. Rosalie is ecstatic, Bella's mad and Jacob and Nessy are thrilled.

So here's the deal. It's the last scene in the Seattle temple. Everyone, well almost everyone from Forks is there. Carlisle and Esme are sealed, Emmett and Rosalie are sealed, Alice and Jasper, Edward and Bella, Jacob and Reneesme and Charlie and Sue are sealed. Then Reneesme is sealed to Edward and Bella, and Edward, Rosalie, Emmett, Jasper and Alice are sealed to Carlisle and Esme. Now there's not a dry eye in the temple--now that they can cry again. Elders Moss and Green are feeling like heroes of a Biblical epic.

Can't you just see that happening. Wow! What would be better than real immortality and Eternal Life. Could there be a better ending than that? I don't think so.

(Leave your kudos for my brilliant new novel in the comment area. Thanks.)

I Support Stephenie Meyer--(selfish reasons)!

Before I leave the Twilight saga obsession and return to more mundane topics like my own life, I thought I'd voice my own version of support for Stephenie Meyer. I only discovered the Twilight series during my summer vacation to Utah. I heard about them from a woman I visit teach here in Camarillo. She said she was reading a series of teenaged books about vampires and thoroughly enjoyed them. I only listened half heartedly wondering if she'd slipped a gear.

When I went to Utah, my nieces sang the praises of the Twilight books. Drooling in fact! I was curious, even went so far as to check them out at the Deseret Book clearance store on 109th south in Salt Lake City. But I'm on a strict budget and when I saw the books were not discounted even at the clearance center, I decided to wait.

Upon returning to Camarillo, I went about my business and then noticed all three books on sale at Target. Oh, joy, rapture! I work full time so it took me a week to read the first 3 books. And wouldn't you know, the very next day was the Saturday of the release of "Breaking Dawn". Could I have been more lucky than that? (Don't answer that.)

I fell in love with every character in the books from Bella and Edward to his brothers and sisters, parental figures, Jacob and Charley. I couldn't get down with Renee. She seemed flighty and more of child figure than a parent.

I wasn't too crazy about James, Victoria and the Volturi. But what would a good love story be without conflict, rejection, broken hearts and the anti-heroes. Good stuff! An emotion roller coaster. Magic!

Me--Similar to Stephenie?

My life is very similar to Stephenie's. I am and L.D.S. mom, however a little older than Stephenie. My 25 year old baby just moved out of the house a few weeks ago. I almost attended BYU. I opted for a local college. I adored English and American lit and love to write. In my youth, I wrote short stories and poems. And just like Stephenie I had a dream about a story I needed to write. It was about a young woman driving on the 15 freeway to Utah to marry a man she's never met in order to free her mother from a jam.

This year I completed that book and have written 3 others with starts of 4 more. It's unbelievable the freedom, the rush and the ecstasy of soaring in the clouds that comes from being able to put pen to paper, or in my case, fingers to keys. It's become my obsession, (next to Twilight), my passion and my release. I can't find enough time in my already overly booked day to write, but when I do, I'm totally blissed out, (as Bella would say).

Praise, adulation, jealousy?

Anyway, back to Stephenie and my original premise. What a marvelous talent this woman has! Don't you agree? A true proclivity to express in the written word awe-inspiring, magical stories that lead the reader on a journey of resplendent youthful romance, tragedy and ultimate triumph and unconditional love. Bravo, Stephenie Meyer! Bravo!

There are few books in the world that have inspired a greater love for the characters than what Stephenie has written for us. She truly has been endowed with creativity, ingenuity, a rare charisma and genius that few people have.

Stephenie has weaved a mesmerizing spell that has bewitched, charmed and captivated millions. God bless you Stephenie. Long may you live! I'm one of the enchanted Twi-Hards.

Midnight Sun - will it see the light of day?

I, like millions of her fans, was waiting with bated breath for the next installment of the Twilight series, Midnight Sun, which tells the Twilight story from the perspective of Edward. Though patience isn't one of my virtues, I was horribly stricken to learn that someone near and dear and trusted as a friend, illegally and unethically stole one of her copies of her manuscript and greedily posted it on the internet. What was the purpose of that? Do it bring this person fame and fortune or condemnation and disparaging remarks from Stephenie's legitimate and fiercely loyal fans?

Given the duress of betrayal that Stephenie was put under because of the actions of one close and trusted, Stephenie has decided to put the project on hold---indefinitely! Could this be a bigger tragedy to Twilight fans? Absolutely not! A million times no! It's like denying her fans the ability to breathe or function as normal human beings. Her fans are walking around zombie-like until we have the final installment of Edward's. I personally felt like I'd been sucker punched in the stomach. Unimaginable! Criminal! Without honor!

Gentle persuasion!

I would like to tell Stephenie, if she would ever feel to change her mind, don't stop writing in behalf of Edward. I'd like to remind her about a story of a young man that we both know intimately.

This young man had a "trusted" friend, one who worked with him, loved him and gave him money for a book project. When the manuscript was partially completed, this "trusted" friend begged the young man to show it to his doubting, jealous and skeptical wife. The friend begged, cajoled, and pleaded for a chance to show his wife the manuscript to prove to her he wasn't wasting his time or money.

Against his better judgment, the young man allowed his "trusted" friend to borrow the manuscript. He even went so far as to have him make a covenant with him and sign a promissory note for the return of it. He also made his friend promise to show it only to his caterwauling wife. However, to make a long, miserable story short, the "trusted" friend's wife misappropriated the manuscript, change the text and then lost it all together.

Can you image how the young man felt--Betrayed, desolate, deceived, and hurt? He was left with the feeling that he couldn't trust any one, not even his closest friends. His work, his time, and a promise to God to complete something that would rock the world, all stood at a crossroad.

But this young man persevered. He never went back, never started over but continued on from the point of the missing and stolen pages, realizing that they would be lost to the world forever. However, this same book that was completed has been read by tens of millions of people.


Please, Please, Please--I'm not too proud to beg!!!

Just like the young man in the story, please don't give up, Stephenie. Don't lose heart regarding Midnight Sun. Please don't disappoint your fans. Thousands, if not millions of people wish with all their hearts and offer a constant prayer that you will finish Edward's tale.

We know you have other projects and we look forward to them as well with great anticipation. But somewhere, somehow we hope you will find the time and the desire to complete Midnight Sun. Your fans will be eternally grateful if you do.

And I'm not so unselfish and self-sacrificing to admit that I'm among the most avid of people waiting on pins and needles for the completed work. Please finish Edward's tale in spite of the criminal and imbecilic acts of others. You deserve to triumph over adversity. And by golly, I just can't wait to read it!

A vampire in love with a human--Okay I'll Bite!

I know I'm coming a little bit late to the blood bath that is known as the Twilight Novel Series, three books written by Stephenie Meyer. I finally found them. It only took me three years to discover them. I finally saw the three books on sale at Target and snuck in behind three twittering teen-aged girls who were ogling over them and snagged the last copy of Twilight, New Moon and Eclipse. I admit that at first the thought of reading a book about vampires put me off. Secondly, I didn't think I'd enjoy a book written for the teen-aged set.

But, then I read it. I was sucked in, bitten by a splendid tale of teen-aged angst, first love and blood sucking vampires. What fun!
The story is told from the perspective of a tormented yet quirky, accident prone, unsophisticated and guileless seventeen year old girl, Bella, who moves from Phoenix to live with her divorced father in Forks, Washington. Watching the story unfold through her eyes, I was drawn back to my own teenage years. I remembered vividly what it was like to be the new girl in a strange high school. I remember those pressures of trying to fit in, to be acceptable to the populous and to find that first blood-boiling heart-stopping love. It brought back memories of humiliation and apprehension as well as my own thirst for acceptance and romance. I could almost imagine myself as Bella.

Bella discovers a group of teenagers that are unlike any of the other "normal" crowd of teenagers at her high school and a fascination begins with one angelic-like figure named Edward. Her fascination turns to obsession and when a friend from the Indian reservation intimates that Edward is part of a group called the "Cold Ones", Bella soon discovers for herself that Edward and his family are--bloodthirsty vampires!

But does this information scare Bella? Certainly not! When she should have run screaming for her life, she falls in love with this enigmatic, perfect, devastatingly, inhumanly beautiful boy-man-old guy. Really, really old guy. She asks him how old he is and he responds by telling her he's seventeen. Then she has the courage to ask him how long he's been seventeen. And he replies, a very long time.

I am so thankful that I came to the blood lust obsession late. Now I can read all the books at one time instead of waiting breathless, dripping in gory anxious agony waiting for the next installment to be written and printed. I raced through Twilight and New Moon faster than Edward can race through the forest with Bella on his back. Now I'm starting Eclipse. On Saturday, August 2, the last book in the series hits the stores, Breaking Dawn. How will it end? Boy I'm so thirsty to find out, I may just have to go on a hunt! At least to Costco to pick up the next book.

I remember my first love in high school. I can picture him now. Not unlike the unflinching stunning beauty of Edward, this young man may not have had pale cold skin, or amber eyes, or run like a gazelle, but the shock to my system whenever he was near was like having my life sustaining blood drained out of me and my heart removed from my chest. I felt like an undead creature when I was around him. Gorgeous, athletic, divertingly handsome, this young man held such a fascination for me that I followed him around like a love sick puppy dog for four years.

When he graduated from the junior college we attended together and disappeared, I felt the exact same empty hole in the chest pain that Bella experienced. Even now, some thirty three years later, I can picture this young man in my mind, tall, handsome, with exquisitely bright blue eyes and tussled reddish brown hair smiling at me with straight white teeth amidst the glow of his scarlet cheeks that flamed when he was engaged in activities. I even dream of him still. Always running toward him, wanting him to stay with me. Wanting him to love me with an eternal never-ending love. But that's a story for another time and has nothing to do with reality.

I digress. Back to Edward and Bella. My only heart stopping blood curdling fear is that when the Twilight movie opens on 12-12-08, that the Edward and Bella characters I have already seen clearly in my mind, won't be portrayed on the screen sufficiently for my taste. From the movie trailer, I don't get a really good image of either of them. See if you agree.



I also hope that the producers of the movie will stick to the essence of the book and not take too much creative license with the story line. For those of us who read the books, we've already seen the movie in our minds and know Edward and Bella intimately.

If you haven't read the Twilight series, you should, even if nothing more than for the entertainment value. You may find the idea of a human girl in love with a vampire boy that thirsts for her blood repugnant. I did. But after reading the first two books, what stood out the most was the relationship between the two main characters. The taste of love budding for the first time for both of them and the excruciating and intense love story that grips your heart and doesn't let up through dangers and threats of blood shedding and death are extremely exciting.

But if you don't lose your soul to Edward and Bella after reading the books, then you really aren't an imaginative fanciful romantic who believes in the whimsical and mythical spell of love that can transcend boundaries of unthinkable differences. Like the trailer says, "Forbidden fruit if the most sweet." Go on, try it, taste it, thirst for it.