If we took into account that the spineless high schooler would inevitably call upon her handsome werewolf or animal-sucking vampire for protection, where-as the Boy-Who-Lived would simply raise his wand to the challenge, I think we would have our answer without discussion.
Now don’t get me wrong. I’ve been a die-hard fan of both Twilight and Harry Potter. I have read all the books and seen all the movies. I’ve heard all the opinions there really are possibly to be heard. Yet, still, I come back to the same conclusion over and over again — without fail, the Harry Potter series kicks the Twilight series out of literary consideration. After carefully considering all aspects of what makes a book appeal to an audience, and remembering that the next movie in both series comes out November 2010, I have come up with a list of reasons why fans should put down Eclipse and pick up Deathly Hallows.
1. Character development — When we meet Bella and Harry, they are two very under confident teens. Harry’s sort of a trouble-maker. Bella is so depressed after moving away from Arizona that the readers are afraid she might kill herself. As the stories progress, Bella’s attitude develops into “If I don’t have Edward, my life is over,” where-as Harry steps up to the plate, wand in hand, ready to figure his life out. Not convinced yet? By the end of book four, Bella’s selfish idea is that she will protect the vampire baby in her stomach even if it’s going to kill her, where-as Harry unselfishly goes to his inevitable death to protect the world from a very evil being.
2. Climax — Stephanie Meyer murders the idea of climax in her plotlines. At the end of Book 3, there is an epic battle with the werewolves and Cullens on one side and baby vampires on the other side. Does it feel epic? No. Mainly because Bella is too stubborn to stay home and has to be out in a tent, in the middle of the woods, freezing her fanny off with a worried Jacob and Edward, who should be fighting to protect her. On the other side, we see Harry fighting Professor Quirrell in book 1, a massive spider in 2, dementors in 3, Voldemort in 4, Death Eaters in 5, Death Eaters in 6, and a ton of people including Death Eaters and Voldemort in 7. There is always a climax. The audience never yearns for a fight scene, which is what I yearned for at the end of Meyer’s Breaking Dawn, where the Volturi show up, there’s a set up for a massive battle, and then… then… nothing.
3. Sequels — Sure, everyone publishes a book they’re not proud of, but I think I’ll take Harry’s angst, Ron’s struggle with his love for Hermione and a little drama over a finale book that made readers’ eyes widen as they say, “HUH?” Come on, Stephanie Meyer. You tiptoe around every little subject, keep your characters innocent and then your fourth book contains pedophilia, brutal sex, and a C-Section with Edward’s teeth? At least J.K. Rowling is consistent.
4. Morals — This is pretty plain and simple to me. When the Harry Potter series first came out, parents freaked out over their children reading books about witchcraft. However, I could always shut parents up with arguing that the series is an epic about the struggles of good triumphing over evil. It doesn’t tell you how to get the hair of a unicorn and mix it with toads’ eyes to make a love potion. On the other hand, I haven’t heard many complaints from mothers worrying about their children reading Twilight. This bothers me because the book teaches selfishness. She wants Edward. No, she wants Jacob. Now she wants both at once. “I don’t care about my soul as long as I can be with you.” What is this? Shouldn’t mothers be worried about their daughters running off with the first boy they meet because, “Mooooom, we’re in looooove.”
So there you have it. Megan’s perspective on these two infamous book series. Keep in mind that I did read both series, I was a die-hard fan, I saw the movies and I’m taking this all from a literary perspective.
And don’t dis on Harry Potter. That book has come a long way and I feel satisfied when I read it, unlike the disgusted, emo feeling I get from Twilight.
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