Posts tagged ‘fiction’

For you Shack fans

By Monica Brand, 29 January, 2010, 3 Comments

The publishing world sees very few books reach blockbuster status, but William Paul Young’s The Shack has now exceeded even that. The book, originally self-published by Young and two friends, has now sold more than 10 million copies and has been translated into over thirty languages. It is now one of the best-selling paperback books of all time, and its readers are enthusiastic.

Follow the link to read the rest of the article. To date, it’s the best I’ve seen regarding the church’s (unfortunate) fondness for Young’s book.

First Saturday

By Monica Brand, 2 January, 2010, 9 Comments

My New Year is off to a brilliant start. I spent a quiet morning today browsing the library shelves and came home with:

Fiction: Under the Lemon Trees by Bhira Backhaus, The Cold Light of Mourning by Elizabeth J. Duncan, The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley.

Non-fiction: Starbucked: A Double Tall Tale or Caffeine, Commerce, and Culture by Taylor Clark and We’ll Always Have Paris: Paris by Ray Bradbury

DVD: The Kite Runner (loved the book, will I approve of the retelling in film?) and Whale Rider (which I’ve heard good things about. Hope it proves true.)

And. . . because this library visit happened without children in tow . . . I read a news magazine. Ah, yes. Me, a cushy chair and the indulgence of focusing uninterrupted. Pure joy.

Now you tell me: what are you reading?

Twilight: Final thoughts and links

By Monica Brand, 30 December, 2009, 7 Comments

Remember those two questions I posed at the beginning of my reading the Twilight books? With this final Twilight post, I’d like to answer both of those questions:

What does the Twilight series teach young people about sex and purity?

Bella calls Edward “old fashioned” because he resists her advances. Bella’s father, Charlie, tells her “times have changed” and to “be careful” when he suspects the teens have become intimate. I was so disappointed in this exchange between father and daughter. I hoped Charlie would be the one voice of reason for a girl lost in so many ways.

Moms (and any dads reading this), there is nothing wrong with telling your daughters (and sons) to wait for sexual intimacy. Purity is not old fashioned, out-of-style, or only for the eternally 17 year old vampires concerned for their eternal soul.

Purity is for today’s teen too.

And if you don’t want to play the No-Sex-Because-the-Bible-Says-So card, think about this:

AIDS. STDs. Unwanted pregnancy. All real issues any sexually active teen needs to think about. Purity for the teen just makes sense.

I’ve read articles in which the books are praised for being pro-marriage. Unfortunately, that’s a bit misleading. Bella isn’t enthusiastic about marrying Edward. Marriage for Bella is just a way for her to get what she wants: transformation into an immortal, and forever-beautiful vampire, protection for the wolf-pack, her friends and family in Forks, Washington.

Sounds more like Bella is looking to escape her problems. That’s no way to enter a marriage.

Do the books promote godly behavior?

The books have snippets of things that I like, but it’s not enough for me to say the series truly encourages how I want my sons and daughters to behave in relation to the opposite sex, especially when dating.

Like I said, I wish Charlie gave Bella different advice regarding her boyfriend vampire.

Edward refuses Bella because he wants to protect his eternal soul. Throughout the first three books, he’s committed to his decision, but at the end of Eclipse, Edward agrees to do whatever Bella wants – including sex – before she becomes a Cullen vampire.

Hmmm. That’s not exactly biblical virtue. Poor, Edward! He almost had it right.

Lust, obsession, low self-worth – these are the attributes taught to our girls when they read Twilight.

Methinks we can do better by our daughters.

Twilight elsewhere

For more commentary on the Twilight series:

Christ and Pop Culture, “Twilight: a positive or negative influence for teens?”

Her.meneutics, “Consider the vampire.”

Visionary Daughters: How Twilight is re-vamping romance

5 Minutes for Books: Touched by a Vampire (book review)

That’s it. . . for now

I shall put Twilight to rest for now. Yet one never knows when the opportunity will present for another post. I hope you found this series helpful in your understanding of Twilight and it’s message to our young readers.

Twilight, sex and the tween

By Monica Brand, 22 December, 2009, 9 Comments

And now we come to what I believe is the most grievous problem with the Twilight series: the tween Twilight reader. The following is a real conversation I had with my 11 year old recently:

Susan: One of the girls in my class at church read Twilight.
Me: Hmmm. I see.
{Pause for dramatic affect}
Me: And how old is this girl?
Susan: I’m not sure. I think she’s ten.

Friends, Twilight is a YA novel. As in: Young Adult. Emphasis on the adult. The pre-teen reader is too young for the complex relationships, love triangles, make-out bedroom scenes, and Bella’s hot and heavy pursuit to bed her vampire boyfriend. Twilight is not for young kids.

I suspect my opinion is not the majority. Unfortunately, I think a lot of parents mistakenly believe that as long as their child is reading something, anything at all, then it’s better than nothing. We all want our kids to read. I get that. Remember how excited I was when Susan discovered the world of a page-turning novel? I love it that she loves to read.

But no way do I want her reading Twilight – or any other fiction with a heavy emphasis of sexual passion and pursuit – no matter how G-rated it is for a YA novel. And Twilight certainly is mild when it comes to those bedroom scenes. Twilight has nothing graphic that I can point to as evidence to say, “Ah-ha! See! Bella and Edward in bed with detailed description of fornication!!” No, there isn’t anything like that in the series.

And yet . . .

The problem isn’t so much what’s IN the book, it’s more who’s READING the book.

This is the problem with American culture; we expose our children too early to adult ideas, concepts they are not mature enough to handle. It’s in the music, television, movies, advertising, Internet, and books. Human anatomy and biology is fine, I’ve no problem with teaching our children how their bodies work, babies made. My concern is for the young reader being exposed to sexual desire, sexual passion. These are concepts our tweens need to hold off on until more mature.

Answer me this question: Why the rush to end childhood innocence?

Think about what the tween – the 9, 10, 11 and 12 year olds – are reading, and thinking about, if they read the Twilight series.

Bella’s continuous attempts to bed Edward – what does that teach the tween about dating relationships and sex?

What about Bella’s poor self-esteem?

And I shudder at the tween reading these books without any parental input. Bella is a horrible example for an impressionable tween girl.

What say you? Do you agree with my conclusions or am I way off the mark? Let’s discuss.

Up next: Final Twilight thoughts

Twilight discussion: Edward, the virtuous vampire

By Monica Brand, 12 December, 2009, 2 Comments

When I read popular novels, I love to find unexpected references to spiritual things. Twilight doesn’t disappoint.

In the Twilight series, beyond the teen romance and surviving the Bad Guy vampires, there is Edward, a vampire struggling to understand what will happen to him if he should die (that’s an IF because vampires are supposed to be immortal, unless destroyed, right?). Head Good Guy vampire, Carlisle, believes in redemption for their kind. Edward isn’t so sure, and spends a lot of time talking about heaven and hell with Bella. (That’s one of the reasons Edward doesn’t want Bella to become a vampire, remember? He doesn’t want her condemned to an eternity as a lost soul.)

Now THIS is a topic I can really sink my teeth into.

At first, Edward tells Bella no to her sexual advances because she is “fragile,” he’s afraid he might hurt her, but the further we get into the series, we come to learn that he is concerned with his own soul. He’s a murderer, a monster. He knows he’s done wrong, and now he’s trying to make amends with his non-human diet. Here is a vampire looking for any way to increase his odds of going to heaven. So no sex with Bella before they are wed.

Interesting, isn’t it?

What do you think?

Can Edward make it into heaven by his good intentions?

Can a vampire go to heaven or is his soul condemned forever?

Did you like the spiritual aspect of the novels or do you only like the love story?

Let’s discuss.

Next: Twilight, sex and the pre-teen

Twilight discussion: the problems with Bella

By Monica Brand, 8 December, 2009, 2 Comments

No, it’s not her romance with a blood-thirsty vampire or her inability to stay away from near death experiences. Not even her lack of coordination for basic physical activity.

Bella Swan, the 17-year-old heroine of the Twilight series, has bigger problems than vampires, a crashing car or bad guys stalking her down dark city streets, making her every parents worst nightmare for a teen-aged daughter. These are the problems I find in Bella:

1. Obsession with Edward

Bella admits it early in the first novel of her “unhealthy” preoccupation with Edward, the strange, yet beautiful boy she spies for the first time in the high school cafeteria. In the second novel, New Moon, her reaction to their break-up is over-the-top despair. I believe her father uses the term comatose. After being threatened with returning her to her mother, Bella finally decides to fake a recovery. Honestly, I had a hard time reading the first half of New Moon, Bella’s misery is so bizarre. Do 17 year olds react this way over a break-up with a first love or just the ones falling for a vampire?

2. Poor self-esteem

This may bother me more than the obsessiveness over a boy, the lack of self-worth Bella feels for herself. All four novels have many references to her perceived lack of beauty, her unworthiness to be protected and general lack of confidence on her part.

3. That sex thing

And this is one of the major reasons I read the series, to observe the relationship between Bella and Edward. Bella admits to a lack of belief in any faith in God, does have a sense of right and wrong (i.e. doesn’t like to lie), yet has no problem attempting to wear down the “old-fashioned” Edward, who refuses to give into temptation again and again. As a Bible-believing Christian, I believe Bella’s behavior is wrong and a sin. (I have a lot more to say about sex and the series, but this post is long enough. I’ll share those thoughts in the next few days.)

Sadly, I don’t care much for Bella – and I tried, I really did. She’s too clingy, obsessive. A bit whiny. Of course without those character flaws, there wouldn’t be much of a plot. I wish Bella were more independent, more strong in herself, and not crazy-obsessive with Edward. Of course, I would advise her to stop trying to have sex before marriage. At least the girl has enough sense to enjoy reading and good books.

What do you think? Do you agree with my assessment of Bella? If not, why?

Up next: Can vampires go to heaven?

Paper Bridges