Follow My Book Blog Friday Hop #9

Happy Follow Friday!!

(Yes, it's a belated 'Happy Friday', I know;

I was much too tired to post anything yesterday,

since I had a rough day at work!)

This weekly feature is hosted by

Rachel at Parajunkee's View 

and 

Alison at Alison Can Read,

 which you really must go and check out!!

Rachel not only has fabulous features,

but is a web designer

'par excellence'!!

Alison has a beautiful and very

interesting blog!

You can find the rules at the links above.

Join in the fun and make new blogging friends!!

This week's featured blog is:

The World of the Spork Master!

Here's this week's question:

 Do you have a favorite series that you read over and over again? Tell us a bit about it and why you keep on revisiting it.

The Twilight Saga

Stephenie Meyer

Hardcover, 2,752 pages

Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

October 12, 2010

(This is the boxed collection of all four books,

which had previously been published singly.)

WARNING

For those who have not read these books,

there are spoilers ahead!

When I saw this question yesterday, I knew I had to answer it, so I decided to post today, even though the hop runs on Fridays.  (What the heck, it's the weekend!  Lol.)

Although I haven't made a habit of re-reading this series on a regular basis, I have read all four books twice.  (So far!)  I have also re-read the first volume, Twilight, three times.

Along with all the millions of fans of this series the world over, I can point to one basic reason for my love of it: the romance.  This is an incredibly romantic series!

Another aspect of the books that has drawn me to them is that, for Stephenie Meyer, Edward's vampirism is a metaphor.  Edward, unlike so many abusive men on this planet, strives to control his basic vampire nature in order to protect his beloved Bella from himself.  At first, he attempts to simply stay away from her.  When that fails, he does everything he possibly can to stay in control of his blood thirst when he's around her.  Also, Bella becomes his whole life, his most important treasure.  What woman wouldn't want to be considered a man's most important treasure, to be cherished and loved with tenderness and passion?  Because there's plenty of passion, albeit restrained, in these books.   

On the other hand, Bella is not exactly a helpless damsel in distress.  In New Moon, for instance, she unhesitatingly jumps on a plane to rescue Edward from the Volturi, halfway across the world.  Once there, she manages to stop him just as he is about to commit the vampire version of suicide, which he had planned on because he had thought her dead.

Once Bella herself becomes a vampire, she, too, does everything in her power to protect her family.  Even before her transformation, however, she's constantly attempting to shield her parents from the strange paranormal world she has been unwittingly thrust into. 

Then there's the love of Jacob and Bella...this is even more poignant.  Even though I wanted Bella and Edward to be together, I could see that she would have had a wonderful life with Jacob, whose ability to turn into a wolf is another metaphor for a man's baser urges.  Indeed, it's even fueled by his anger.  In light of this, it's interesting to note that there's only one female werewolf in the books.

Dr. Carlisle Cullen, Edward's adoptive father and the moral compass of the Cullen family, is an incredibly compelling character as well.  Fighting the terrible nature he has been subjected to, against his will, he has become a physician, and has for centuries helped to save human lives, instead of taking them.  He has been the most important influence in Edward's life.  His compassion and gentle, philosophical guidance are the backbone of all four books. 

There are so many things I could say about these books, but that, of course, would take up several posts!  Love, self-sacrifice, hope, moral strength -- these are the basic themes of The Twilight Saga.  Meyer has woven them into a highly-emotionally charged, action-packed plot full of mythological elements.  Addictive stuff, indeed!

I simply adore these books!!   Several editions, both hardcover and paperback, grace my bookshelves.  Included are the first three collector's edition volumes, and they're waiting for the fourth, which will be coming out soon! 




Here's the list (with the Linky) of participating blogs.  I hadn't done this before because I thought only the hosting blogs were supposed to do it.  In fact, I have just found out that not every blog hop does this kind of thing.  Interesting...  Having visited other blogs in this particular hop, I've seen that they, too, have the list.  Therefore, I've included one in my own post.  Here it is!