BLURB

To be irrevocably in love with a vampire is both fantasy and nightmare woven into a dangerously heightened reality for Bella Swan. Pulled in one direction by her intense passion for Edward Cullen, and in another by her profound connection to werewolf Jacob Black, she has endured a tumultuous year of temptation, loss and strife to reach the ultimate turning point. Her imminent choice to either join the dark but seductive world of immortals or pursue a fully human life has become the thread from which the fate of two tribes hangs.

Now that Bella has made her decision, a startling chain of unprecedented events is about to unfold with potentially devastating and unfathomable consequences. Just when the frayed strands of Bella's life - first discovered in TWILIGHT, then scattered and torn in NEW MOON and ECLIPSE - seem ready to heal and knit together, could they be destroyed. . .forever?

I love the way Stephenie Meyer wrote this series. Breaking Dawn put everything together in the series. It tied up most of the loose ends coming all the way from Twilight. The first half of the book had me a little scared because the author seemed to be beating about the bush a lot. Bella was going though her usual motions of whinning and wondering about been loved. She was also complaining about having the perfect story book wedding which made me roll my eyes a bit. I forsaw that Edward and Bella would finally get down to business after the wedding. I also forsaw that Edward would whine and want to stop because he thought he was hurting Bella and Bella would win the agruement eventually. but I did not predict the outcome of their union. I guess I have to work on my Alice abilities. The second section of the book was told from Jacob's perpective. I initally thought that was not going to work out but it ended up been okay and added a little something different to the book. I also became very interested in Jacob after this. I liked him from the previous books but I loved him in Breaking Dawn. Jacob finally imprinted, I was so glad this was not an ordinary occurance because nothing about Jake has been ordinary so far. Bella finally tranformed. About time. I also loved the conclusion of the book, it was very well written. I just hope the upcoming movies can do the series justice.

i love this book i have read all of the twilight book love

This book started off a little weird. But then I think everyone would agree that an 18 year old who gets pregnant to a vampire and pops out a rapidly maturing baby is a little strange. The second part of the book, when Bella is turned, is much better in my opinion.

One thing I felt was disappointing about this book was that the build up to Edward and Bella consummating their relationship (for want of a better phrase) never really reached a climax but fell rather flat and was over in a turn of a page. I do understand that this book is aimed at young teens but with television the way it is these days, I would have thought that Stephanie Meyer would at least describe the moment a wee bit, even if only in cliche metaphors and euphamisms. But then maybe she thought these things were better left to the imagination.

All in all, "Breaking Dawn" is a nice tie up to the "Twilight" series.

I remember mom reading me this book when I was little, but what I really remember are the cartoons- the old-style ones, very true to the text, from what I can remember.
These stories are still so darling and sweet. I can see why they are over and above almost every other example of the genre of childrens stories. Reading these for the first time as an adult, I am so sad for the commercialization of the Winnie-the-Pooh franchise. How much better if they were just books, leaving the kids to fill in the rest of the personalities of the characters.
This book makes me want to have kids.

This was the first chapter book we read with Jane. Spring 2008.

This is Mark McNay’s first novel and clearly draws on first hand knowledge of the day to day grind of a certain working class life where a full belly, a warm fire and a good woman is perfection. It fits within a British tradition of “kitchen sink realism” kicked of by John Osbourne’s “Look back in Anger” in the 50’s that looks at the dreams and anger of the working class man and woman. Think of Alan Sillitoe’s Saturday night and Sunday morning or the film work to the current day of Ken Loach and Mike Leigh, both of whom continue to create powerful films unafraid of tackling head on current social problems.

The story follows a day in the life of Sean working in a chicken packing factory**, who discovers that his Brother Archie has come out of jail early ( in for violence and drugs related crime). This sets up a chain of events with tragic consequences as Sean has spent most of a money clip he was banking for his brother. He desperately struggles during the course of the day to borrow the money from family and from the firm. The novel also by flashbacks reveals Sean’s and Archie’s childhood and life up to the events of the day. Sean is no angel; he gambles, takes a more or less willing part as a pick up in his brother’s drug’s network and will use his fists. But unlike his brother does with his family needs in mind- his own and that of his uncle and aunt who gave him a home when his father left and mother died. And it’s for his family that he has to fight for as the day develops.

The story unfolds through a lot of dialogue and switches between first and third person perspectives rather then description although we get’s Sean’s flights of imagination for colour. The dialogue is written in Glaswegian but it doesn’t jar and often it’s in the silences between characters that speak more. The speech patterns (expect sentences where F**k can be a noun, verb, adjective and have several meanings from love to hate! and the mundane events of the day convey tenderness, violence and humour in scene after scene with warm believable characters.

It’s remarkable that the author started a creative writing course in his late forties in 1999 which lead to this award winning (Arts Foundation New Fiction 2007) novel. Hope for all us yet! It is by no means perfect, as the ending is a little flat and the characterisation of Archie teeters on the edge of caricature but it’s an easy page turner and I can’t wait for the Ken Loach channel four adaptation that surely must be in pre production talks as you read this!


** and you may want to rethink eating cheap value chicken after reading the book!