The Salt Lake Tribune
Monday, May 4, 2009
The word from Bal'mer
Dave Rosenthal, who writes the book blog "Read Street" in The Baltimore Sun, has opened up the floor to readers about Deseret Book's decision to take Stephenie Meyer's Twilight book series off the shelves.

The reactions have been mixed. One of Rosenthal's readers condemned Twilight as "dangerous" because it "encourages young women to accept abusive behavior, condone a lifestyle that includes killing, and her message to leave your husband because you're 'bored' is outrageous."

On the other hand, a reader who identified himself/herself as a devout Christian pointed out that "it's FICTION! It's not good or bad for you! People are drawn to the books because of the devotion the 'characters' have for each other."

It's worth pointing out that Deseret Book (or Desert Book, as Rosenthal identifies the LDS Church-owned bookstore chain) has no retail outlets in Baltimore. In fact the closest store to Baltimore is in suburban Denver.

To return the favor, I hereby ask readers of the Culture Vulture blog to nominate their favorite restaurant for Maryland crab cakes.

Labels: ,

Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Bad book! Naughty book!
So now - nearly three years and untold number of copies since its initial release - Deseret Book finally noticed that Stephenie Meyer's vampire series Twilight might raise moral objections among the bookstore chain's devoted LDS audience.

Isn't that a bit like saying an apple is a bad apple only after you've squeezed out all the juice?

As the Tribune's Ben Fulton reported today, Deseret Book (which is owned by the business arm of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) is pulling Twilight and its three sequels off the chain's shelves. The books will still be available through special order for pick-up or mail delivery.

"Like any retailer, our purpose is to offer products that are embraced and expected by our customers. When we find products that are met with mixed review, we typically move them to special order status," read a statement by Deseret Book spokeswoman Leigh Dethman.

The books have been popular with many LDS readers, because Meyer (pictured) - who is a Mormon herself - keeps the sexual tension between human Bella and vampire Edward strictly chaste before marriage.

Labels: ,

Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Wedding Bella
OK, all you Twilight fans out there - and you know who you are - now's your chance to show exactly how much you love your teen vampires.

The King's English Bookshop, 1511 S. 1500 East, is marking the forthcoming release of the fourth Twilight novel, Breaking Dawn, with a big party on the night of Aug. 1 (the book comes out at midnight, Aug. 2) - including a contest to design a wedding dress for the lead character, Bella.

The submission guidelines are quite specific - white satin with vintage lace, a veil and a train, and inspired by the fashions of 1918 (as described on page 614 of Eclipse). You can submit a painting, a sketch, a sculpture or textiles, but the deadline is Monday. The top three entries win awards, with Bella's bracelet going to the first-place winner.

Labels:

Friday, July 11, 2008
Bracing for "Twilight"
Fans of Stephenie Meyer's vampire novels will be rushing to their newsstands this weekend: Entertainment Weekly has the leads of Twilight, Bella and Edward (or actors Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattison, who play them in the movie coming in December), on the cover - and an profile of the author inside.

The profile recounts how Meyer, a Mormon housewife in Phoenix, went to being - in the minds of publishers, anyway - the second coming of J.K. Rowling with her vampires-in-love novels. (The fourth one, Breaking Dawn, hits stores on Aug. 2 - and EW has the opening pages.)

There's also an extended description of Meyer's recent book-tour stop in Salt Lake City for her non-vampire novel The Host. The article describes the rabid nature of Meyer's fans, and that there are some questions about her characters Meyers prefers not to answer - namely, "If vampires go nuts for the smell of blood, what does Bella do when she has her period? 'Gross,' says Meyer."

TMI, people.

Labels:

Feedback
   If you have any hot tips - interesting art exhibits, weird experiences at the theater, unusual billboards, sightings of “High School Musical” stars at Crown Burger, whatever - send them along to me at vulture@sltrib.com.