I read a lot and along those lines I read a lot of young adult fantasy type books. I enjoy reading all types of books. I first read the Twilight books because I saw the ads for the movie and thought it look interesting. I went to see it and thoroughly enjoyed it. Since I understand that the book is pretty much always better than the movie, I immediately went out and bought the books. I read all four of them in a week. I seriously got little sleep and just read them and when I was finished I read them again. I know there are some that are throwing up right now because I just admitted how much I love the Twilight books. Yeah I can see how easy it is to judge them from an adult perspective but I think that too many people forget what it was like to be a teen girl. Seriously, most teen girls are (or think they are) awkward and don't feel pretty. They usually have a crush on a guy that they see as somehow unattainable. So what happens when this guy suddenly is interested in them? What happens when he suddenly thinks they are beautiful? They don't believe it, they often fall into the realm of self doubt. Hell there are a whole lot of adult women that react the same way. I don't think that this makes Bella a weak person, it just makes her a normal teenage girl.
I have heard a lot of criticism of Edward being an "abusive" personality and character but I just call bullshit on that as well. Seriously have these people actually read the books? He isn't abusive, he simply wants to protect her from everything that could harm her. Isn't that what we do with people we love? And let's face it, in his world there are lots of things that could harm her. I don't know, I just don't see how people can be so critical of these characters and of Stephenie Meyer for writing them. In the end, Bella proves just how strong she really is. She does everything that she can to protect her family and her child. She has grown up and is no longer that self-doubting teenager. She learns that there are more important things in life than her love for Edward, it is her love for her child. Isn't that something that we hear mothers say all the time? Isn't that something that we would expect a strong person to think? Isn't this something that we admire Katniss for? I mean Katniss is Prime's mother, for the most part, and she does whatever she has to do to keep her safe. So why is Katniss considered such a hero and Bella is considered a weak, abused, horrible role model?
Honestly, I don't think fictional people should be our daughters or sons heroes. These people are not real. It is vastly more important for us to expose kids to real life heroes, people whose stories are real and not the figment of some one's imagination. People should read and they should read a lot but we should not look to these characters to be our heroes or our inspirations. To do that demeans in some way the real heroes that surround us every single day. Take the time to find out the stories of those around you and it will surprise you how heroic everyday people can be. I wouldn't want my daughter to be Bella, Katniss, or Tris when she grew up. I would want her to be herself, to find her own path and her own inspirations along the way. Books are wonderful and the foster imagination and offer an escape but they should never replace real people in our lives.
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