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The Twilight Phenomenon: Forbidden Fruit or Thirst Quenching Fantasy
The Twilight Phenomenon Forbidden Fruit or Thirst- Quenching Fantasy? equips parents and leaders to candidly discuss the Twilight series with teens who have been caught up in the romance of a human girl and a vampire boy. Much like Harry Potter caught the attention of millions of boys worldwide with spellbinding tales, the Twilight series is holding teenage girls captive with tempting fantasy stories that peak young impressionable minds. Readers of The Twilight Phenomenon will be shocked with the compelling truth behind why the Twilight series is so entrancing. It answers questions Veteran authors of books exposing the good and bad reality of popular books,Kurt and Olivia Bruner successfully help parents navigate the challenges and opportunities that emerge from pop culture by leveraging teen interests to drive dialogue about Christian orthodoxy. Other books by the Bruner's include Finding God in the Lord of the Rings , Shedding Light on His Dark Materials , Playstation Nation , and How to Mess Up Your Child's Life . Concerned parents, teachers, grandparents, youth leaders, and all adults who care about children and young adults will greatly value the wisdom and intelligent conversation shared in The Twilight Phenomenon Forbidden Fruit or Thirst Quenching Fantasy?
176 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2009
1 person is currently reading
24 people want to read
About the author
Kurt Bruner
62 books9 followersKurt Bruner serves as Pastor of Spiritual Formation at Lake Pointe Church and on the adjunct faculty of Dallas Theological Seminary. A graduate of Talbot Seminary and former Vice President with Focus on the Family, Kurt led the teams creating films, magazines, books, and radio drama. As President of HomePointe Inc., he helps local church leaders create an ongoing culture of intentional families. Kurt is the best-selling author of more than a dozen books. Kurt and his wife, Olivia, have four children and live in Rockwall, Texas.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
March 30, 2010
A review by Adam B.R. Clarke
Kurt Bruner, in his work Twilight Phenomenon, does three things absolutely well:
[1:] Expresses the true power of story on the readersʼ lives,
[2:] illuminates the myths of both stories and vampires, and finally,
[3:] allows the readers to see the greater good that comes from knowing the content of the Twilight series.
The power of art over argument – it worked for Dickens and child labour, it worked forBambi and the decline of hunting, so what is the power of this mega-hit?
Edward had always thought he belonged to the world of horror stories. Of course, Iʼd known he was dead wrong. It was obvious that he belonged here. In a fairy tale. – Bella
Stories are made to transform, encourage and challenge us. It is obvious that Bruner does not want that to leave the readerʼs mind as they work through Twilight. He points out three key spiritual concepts that Twilight raises:
[1:] What it means to be human,
[2:] the nature of the soul, and
[3:] how romantic love inspires us towards our ultimate destiny.
The power of story for Bruner is found in connection with spiritual formation, which takes imagination, “Boys, girls, men, and women alike love stories because we are all hungry to connect with reality.” The power found in fictional realities is what brings us face-to-face with our own realities we experience everyday, the realities that we want to run away from, and the ones we would like to forget, but the power of story is what can provide answers.
The history of the vampire within the book is quite helpful and complete. It allows the reader to see the formation of the myth as well as the literary history of the character. The turn made by the author to point the reader toward the connections between the myths that make up vampires, and the truth that is spoken from the Bible about Satan, is incredible. There is a breakdown used, to show the nature of Satan and the myths that make up vampire methodology, that will prove how sinister a true villain really is.
The connections drawn to the Twilight series are done in completion, often citing the exact location of his findings which allows the reader to draw on his conclusions and also allows for the reader to form their own thoughts on the subject. In providing the reader with both positive and negatives about the qualities found within the characters, it allows for those both for and against Twilight to see both sides. The immaturity of the love portrayed, contrasted with the virtues illuminated through Edward, is only an example of the complete functionality of this literary critic.
Bruner is quick to point out that stories only have influence if we look at the authorʼs underlying assumption, as their spiritual agenda is often leaked out through their pen – whether they mean to or not. Thus, we need to be aware of the lenses that we, as readers, look at the story. The story is shaped by our experiences and influences, which is how we discern what is good or evil. When we become aware of these two filters, we can answer the three questions that Bruner wants his reader to focus on:
[1:] What are we made for?
[2:] What is wrong with our world?
[3:] How will it be made right?
These are the questions he seeks out and provides the answers for. It is these three questions and the power of the complete story that makes Twilight relevant to anyone working with youth. How are the words shaping the worldview of those in our midst? What are the experiences that draw them to these stories? Ultimately, this book will allow youth to come face-to-face with many questions they may have about their faith and worldview. The complete breakdown of this process, done by the author, makes this book worth the read and purchase, as with two movies left to go this phenomenon, it is going nowhere fast.
Kurt Bruner, in his work Twilight Phenomenon, does three things absolutely well:
[1:] Expresses the true power of story on the readersʼ lives,
[2:] illuminates the myths of both stories and vampires, and finally,
[3:] allows the readers to see the greater good that comes from knowing the content of the Twilight series.
The power of art over argument – it worked for Dickens and child labour, it worked forBambi and the decline of hunting, so what is the power of this mega-hit?
Edward had always thought he belonged to the world of horror stories. Of course, Iʼd known he was dead wrong. It was obvious that he belonged here. In a fairy tale. – Bella
Stories are made to transform, encourage and challenge us. It is obvious that Bruner does not want that to leave the readerʼs mind as they work through Twilight. He points out three key spiritual concepts that Twilight raises:
[1:] What it means to be human,
[2:] the nature of the soul, and
[3:] how romantic love inspires us towards our ultimate destiny.
The power of story for Bruner is found in connection with spiritual formation, which takes imagination, “Boys, girls, men, and women alike love stories because we are all hungry to connect with reality.” The power found in fictional realities is what brings us face-to-face with our own realities we experience everyday, the realities that we want to run away from, and the ones we would like to forget, but the power of story is what can provide answers.
The history of the vampire within the book is quite helpful and complete. It allows the reader to see the formation of the myth as well as the literary history of the character. The turn made by the author to point the reader toward the connections between the myths that make up vampires, and the truth that is spoken from the Bible about Satan, is incredible. There is a breakdown used, to show the nature of Satan and the myths that make up vampire methodology, that will prove how sinister a true villain really is.
The connections drawn to the Twilight series are done in completion, often citing the exact location of his findings which allows the reader to draw on his conclusions and also allows for the reader to form their own thoughts on the subject. In providing the reader with both positive and negatives about the qualities found within the characters, it allows for those both for and against Twilight to see both sides. The immaturity of the love portrayed, contrasted with the virtues illuminated through Edward, is only an example of the complete functionality of this literary critic.
Bruner is quick to point out that stories only have influence if we look at the authorʼs underlying assumption, as their spiritual agenda is often leaked out through their pen – whether they mean to or not. Thus, we need to be aware of the lenses that we, as readers, look at the story. The story is shaped by our experiences and influences, which is how we discern what is good or evil. When we become aware of these two filters, we can answer the three questions that Bruner wants his reader to focus on:
[1:] What are we made for?
[2:] What is wrong with our world?
[3:] How will it be made right?
These are the questions he seeks out and provides the answers for. It is these three questions and the power of the complete story that makes Twilight relevant to anyone working with youth. How are the words shaping the worldview of those in our midst? What are the experiences that draw them to these stories? Ultimately, this book will allow youth to come face-to-face with many questions they may have about their faith and worldview. The complete breakdown of this process, done by the author, makes this book worth the read and purchase, as with two movies left to go this phenomenon, it is going nowhere fast.
August 23, 2010
I was disappointed in this. I was expecting a scholarly debate on the Twilight series but instead, this was a largely theological discussion (with very little sources outside of Biblical stories) with almost no critical analysis. While the author clearly has a strong background in theology, he limits his angle to only a Christian perspective and does not invite debate to his conclusions. He merely compares an aspect of Twilight - such as Edward's beauty, Bella's sexuality, or the fantasy genre in general - to Biblical references and then makes connections between the 2 materials in a way that almost screams "See? The Bible did this first!". His "analysis" is repetitive and he stops short of a true critical discussion on almost every topic he covers (and he misses a great deal, never going into depth analyzing Jacob's role in the series, nor any of the other Cullen clan outside of Edward and Carlise). Overall, this companion novel seems less like a scholarly discussion of the series and more so an attempt to justify the Twilight series to Christian parents concerned as to whether the books are acceptable literature for their children.
March 30, 2011
Well I have to admit when I ordered this book I really did not look into what I was buying. I was expecting another companion reader full of twilight information and gushing and this turned into to be a novel of religion and comparison. The author is a Christian minister and he compares his faith to the faith of Stephanie Meyer the author of Twilight that is Mormon. The book also includes other comparisons between different religions and different vampire stories starting back in 1897 with Dracula. I sadly have to admit I started this book read the first 70 pages and set it aside for almost four months and pushed myself to finish it in one sitting. I have never started a book and not finished it and I would not allow this one to be an exception. I can’t say I would recommend this book to anyone but would defiantly recommend anyone who picks it up should keep an open mind. I will not read it again and I will not read anything else by this author I also cannot say I agree with the book or have learned anything in it but it was defiantly a more profound reflection period in my life in a long time.
June 8, 2010
In The Twilight Phenomenon, Kurt Bruner posed questions rather than simply sharing his perspective. It made me think, and that is a very good thing.
Throughout the pages, we meet story tellers like C.S.Lewis. How do they see fantasy? How should we view the crafting of stories? Most of all, how do they relate to us as spiritual beings? What are the deep longing that they address in each of us?
Then we take a look at Twilight. Who knew vampires could be so well loved? But even more important is the 'Why'?
I'd certainly look for more books by Bruner.
Throughout the pages, we meet story tellers like C.S.Lewis. How do they see fantasy? How should we view the crafting of stories? Most of all, how do they relate to us as spiritual beings? What are the deep longing that they address in each of us?
Then we take a look at Twilight. Who knew vampires could be so well loved? But even more important is the 'Why'?
I'd certainly look for more books by Bruner.
January 21, 2013
I couldn't stop reading this analysis of the Twilight series. After first watching the movie, I decided this would be a good read to get some perspective. Overall this was a good book, in a balanced and fair approach. It made me appreciate the Twilight series in a new way, and yet at the same time showed the potential pitfalls of this series. Overall this book definitely encouraged a thorough think through of the series.
July 22, 2010
So I don't know what I expected from this book, but it was terrible. The book claims to be about the Twilight series, however, it seemed more like a complete look at God in children's lit. Spending entirely too much time focusing on CS Lewis' work.
Review in a sentence...Terrible.
Review in a sentence...Terrible.
March 22, 2011
Good analysis of the vampire phenomena in general as well as some small tidbits from the Twilight movie series.
Could be used as a good discussion point for senior high school, uni etc.
Also provides some templates for thinking through other movies and books.
Could be used as a good discussion point for senior high school, uni etc.
Also provides some templates for thinking through other movies and books.
September 8, 2012
this book was so horrible at least for me. too much religious crap. i can't stand religion when it's pushed in your face.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews