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New Moon (novel)

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New Moon
File:New moon cover.jpg
First edition cover of New Moon
AuthorStephenie Meyer
LanguageEnglish
SeriesTwilight series
GenreYoung adult, Romance novel
PublisherLittle, Brown
Publication date
September 6, 2006
Publication placeUnited States
Media typePrint (hardcover, paperback)
Pages563
ISBNISBN 0-316-16019-9 Parameter error in {{ISBNT}}: invalid character
Preceded byTwilight 
Followed byEclipse 
For other uses, see New Moon (disambiguation).

New Moon is a young adult fantasy-romance novel by author Stephenie Meyer. It is Meyer's second novel in the Twilight saga. This book, unlike the previous entry, is about losing true love.[1] It was originally published in hardcover in 2006.

Plot summary

Protagonist Isabella "Bella" Swan is thrown an eighteenth birthday party by Alice and Edward Cullen, the vampire she loves, and the rest of their vampire family. While unwrapping a gift, she receives a paper cut. Edward's brother Jasper, although attempting a non-human diet, is overwhelmed by the scent of blood and tries to attack Bella. In an attempt to keep her safe from the world of vampires, Edward tells Bella that he no longer loves her and leaves the town of Forks, Washington with his family. Bella becomes severely depressed and seeks comfort with Jacob Black, an old family friend who eases her pain over losing Edward.

Bella and Jacob begin spending a lot of time together, and Bella soon discovers that the rush of adrenaline present when she places herself in dangerous situations stimulates hallucinations of Edward's voice. Bella begins seeking out dangerous behavior, such as riding a motorcycle, to trigger the illusions. Meanwhile, Jacob finds out that he is a werewolf, and eventually reveals this secret to Bella. After Bella attempts cliff-diving, she gets caught in a riptide and is rescued by Jacob.

At the same time, Alice Cullen, Edward's vampire sister who has visions of the future, has a vision of Bella jumping off the cliff. Presuming Bella is dead, Alice rushes to Forks to check on Charlie Swan, Bella's father, while Edward calls Bella's home. Jacob answers and informs Edward that Charlie is at a funeral, referring to that of a man in town who had died of a heart attack, but Edward draws the conclusion that he means Bella's funeral. Desperate after Bella's supposed death, Edward flees to Italy to see the Volturi, peace-keeping vampires who would be able to kill Edward, granting him leave of a world without Bella.

Bella and Alice rush to Italy to stop Edward, and save him before it is too late. Before they leave Italy, the Volturi tell them that Bella, a human who knows of the existence of vampires, must either be killed or changed into a vampire herself. After they return to Forks, Edward explains to Bella that he only left in order to protect her, and she forgives him. The book ends with the Cullens voting in favor of Bella being changed into a vampire, much to Edward's dismay.

Critical reception

Reception for New Moon was mixed. A reviewer from DearAuthor.com complained that, "[Stephenie Meyer portrays Bella], either intentionally or not, as a selfish user who seemed to only be able to exist with the help of a man in her life", but also stated that, "For all my disappointment, New Moon zips by and leaves me wanting more", and rated New Moon a B-.[2] AvidBookReader.com rated New Moon a C+ and said that, "The protagonist and narrator, Bella, happens to be the weakest character in the story and the most annoying ... I didn’t really care for the teenage angst ... [and] the thread with the werewolves was a bit uneven."[3] A critic at Teenreads.com said, "In the middle, the story sometimes drags, and readers may long for the vampires' return. The events of New Moon, though, will leave Meyer's many fans breathless for the sequel, as Bella finally understands everything that will be at stake if she makes the ultimate choice to give up her humanity and live, like the vampires, forever."[4] However, the book was condemned by feminist blogger and literary critic Kellen Rice as being sexist, saying, "Bella enters a self-described 'zombie' state when Edward leaves her. ... What does this say to readers, ... [that] they should fall apart at the seams for months if their boyfriend leaves them?"[5]

Cover and title significance

The flower on the cover of New Moon is a red and white ruffled tulip. Stephenie Meyer has stated that the flower has no significance to the story, as she had no part in choosing its design.[6]

The title refers to the darkest phase of the lunar cycle, indicating that New Moon is about the darkest time of Bella's life.[6]

Awards and nominations

  • New Moon rose to the #1 position on the New York Times Bestseller List for Children's Chapter Books in its second week on the list, and remained in that spot for eleven weeks. It spent over 30 weeks in total on the list.

Film adaptation

Summit Entertainment had optioned New Moon by October 2008,[7] but the possibility of the movie being made depended on the success of Twilight.[8] On November 22, 2008 Summit Entertainment announced that the studio is officially moving forward with the production of New Moon, as a result of Twilight's success.[9] In a recent interview, Kristen Stewart revealed that they expect New Moon filming to begin in March 2009, and that they will likely be filming part of the movie on-location in Italy.[10] The studio is aiming for a late 2009 or early 2010 release of the film.[11] On December 7, 2008 Summit announced that Catherine Hardwicke, who directed the first movie of the Twilight franchise, will not be directing New Moon.[11] An offer has been made to Chris Weitz (director of American Pie and The Golden Compass).[12]Summit wishes to release the film by November 20, 2009.

References

  1. ^ Amazon.com : Entertainment : Stephenie Meyer Talks About Eclipse
  2. ^ REVIEW: New Moon by Stephenie Meyer | Dear Author: Romance Book Reviews, Author Interviews, and Commentary
  3. ^ REVIEW: New Moon by Stephenie Meyer | avidbookreader.com
  4. ^ Teenreads.com - New Moon by Stephenie Meyer
  5. ^ Kellan Rice (2008-08-16). "'Twilight' Sucks... And Not In A Good Way". Blast Magazine. Retrieved 2008-11-16.
  6. ^ a b StephenieMeyer.com | Twilight Series | New Moon FAQ
  7. ^ Steven Zeitchik (2008-10-02). "Summit's 'Twilight' a franchise with bite". The Hollywood Reporter. Nielsen Business Media. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
  8. ^ "Twilight: Catherine Hardwicke Interview". About.com. 2008-10-16. Retrieved 2008-11-02.
  9. ^ Dave McNary (2008-11-22). "Summit announces 'Twilight' sequel". Variety. Reed Business Information. Retrieved 2008-11-22.
  10. ^ "Kristen Stewart Interview". On-Air with Ryan Seacrest. 2008-11-25. 102.7 KIIS-FM. {{cite episode}}: Unknown parameter |serieslink= ignored (|series-link= suggested) (help)
  11. ^ a b "Summit Begins Search for New Moon Director" (Press release). Summit Entertainment. 2008-12-07. Retrieved 2008-12-08.
  12. ^ Nicole Sperling (2008-12-10). "'Twilight' sequel: New details on 'New Moon'". The Hollywood Reporter. Nielsen Business Media. Retrieved 2008-12-10.
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