Twilight Hysteria
by Kyle Charland

First time author Stephenie Meyers, struck gold when she wrote Twilight in 2006. After three years, and three additional books, the saga has taken off like wild fire around the world.

Twilight, the first book in the series, chronicles the developing relationship between a human girl, Bella Swan, and a vampire, Edward Cullen. Bella meets Edward after moving to Forks, Washington to live with her dad after her mother moves to Florida to be with her boyfriend.

After the release of the book, Twilight hysteria ensued. Many devoted readers developed a cult following of the characters, especially Edward, a fan favorite.

“Originally, I read Twilight because a friend recommended it,” said Julie Matthewson, a 26-year-old caregiver. “But after the first book, I was hooked. Mostly because of Edward.”

With over 500 Facebook groups dedicated to him, he is arguably one of the most popular characters of the series.

“I’m not sure why, but I fell in love with his character right along with Bella,” said Matthewson. “He always knows the right thing to say, and he loves Bella unconditionally.”

Many people enjoy the books for other reasons. The series touches on subjects that every age group or either gender can relate to.

“I think these books are easy to identify with for any age group,” said Erin Gonzolez, an 18-year-old Central Michigan University student. “For me it was extremely romantic, but it was also filled with suspense.”

The series takes on issues like pregnancy, family issues, divorce and love.

“My parents got a divorce recently and I didn’t really have anyone I could talk to,” said Gonzolez. “It was nice to read about someone else who went through the same thing, even if it was fiction.”

Before Breaking Dawn’s release, the series sold over 7.5 million copies in the United States alone. In the first 24 hours of being released, Breaking Dawn, the last book in the series, sold an astounding 250,000 copies and to date has sold over 3.2 million

Twilight is being made into a major motion picture, which is due out in theaters Nov. 21.