In hopes of taking advantage of the never-ending Twilight frenzy, HarperCollins decided to design a new cover for its paperback editions of Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Read the full post.
Sep 1
2009
05:33 PM ET
'Twilight'-branded 'Wuthering Heights': Love or loathe?
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Believe it or not, in the UK “Wuthering Heights” is at the top of the classic bestsellers list. However, I find it more telling when the customer reviews say things like this: “Hayley Mears wrote that “I was really disappointed when reading this book, it’s made to believe to be one of the greatest love stories ever told and I found only five pages out of the whole book about there love and the rest filled with bitterness and pain and other peoples stories”
and: “in old english or mordern understandable english?” “if so i want it but it sounds like it’s just the original version with a different cover,” from this article: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/aug/28/vampire-endorsement-bronte-bestseller
I love Twilight and Wuthering Heights, but what annoys me about this is the fact that EW had to write an article about it. This really isn’t newsworthy. To be honest, some of the Twilight-related fights that ensue on ew.com occur because of the sheer number of Twilight articles that are published. There are many hardcore fans, like myself, who don’t need to read 10 Twilight-related articles a day. I love that ew.com reports relevant Twilight news…but we don’t need all this extra crap. It’s obvious that it’s just ew.com’s attempt to get more hits.
stephanie meyer is an idiot. i remember being so disgusted with her interpretation of bronte’s magnum opus, that i vomited a bit in my mouth. yeah, edward is like heathcliffe in that he’s an insane stalker psycho loverboy…but heathcliffe is likeable because he was such a terror, edward just sucks…pun not intended…
True that.
i personally love it!! as a teenager i read the classics… not everyone did. anything that can get new generations to read great books that have been around for years is cool to me!
Agreed Karina. I am definitely part of the adult Twilight fanbase and the book actually makes me want to read Wuthering Heights again. So many people knock Twilight without ever reading a word, even I did before I read it, it’s completely outside of the genre I usually read, but now, I am hooked.
A Person..you are contradicting yourself as Monique points out…you make it sound like Twilight fans are too small minded to have read or understood a classic novel but you are forgetting many older fans who grew up reading and learning about these books in school.
So? They are mostly twimoms who were forced to read this in high school. Just a tiny bit higher than the crazy teenybopper fangirls. Nothing to praise.
I think it’s incredibly insulting to lump a group of people together, and assume that they are all exactly the same. There are MANY Twilight fans who are NOT teenagers, who’ve adored the books for years, and are actually read sad about the fact that the movie sucked, and that now Twilight is everywhere. There are many of us who are not Twimoms, and are not crazy teenyboppers.
I think it shows a lack of understanding to make grand assumptions about an incredibly large group of people.
Actually mare, Most of us Anti Twilighters HAVE read the books. I’ve read all four with the vain hope that it would get better as they go on and I hated them because Stephenie Meyer is a poor writer, full stop. She never shows anything, but tells everything. The woman never met a thesaurus she didn’t like. There are so many books out there that are better than this series. Why people think it’s the end all be all of literature is beyond my comprehension. Answer me this? What is so great about Edward Cullen except that he’s hot?
Wasn’t referring to Twimoms, which i am not in that category, just was agreeing that not all fans are teens. Everyone has their own opinions and likes and dislikes. Like Steph wrote not every group of people is the same. You’re right, Samanta there are people that knock Twilight that have read it and some that have not. I never claimed that Stephanie Meyer was an exceptional writer or that it’s the be all end all of literature, I just like the story and not just because of Edward but I can relate to Bella, that feeling of being young and in love for the first time.
Why would you waste time reading 4 horrible books? Life is too short to read books you feel are poorly written!
And speaking from a Twilight fan’s perspective, my opinion of why man women/girls love Edward: women want to be loved unconditionally. Women want to feel special. Edward’s love for Bella is irrational and all-consuming. Stalkerish? Yes. Obsessed? Indeed. Some of would never admit this in real life, but the idea of being protected like Edward does for Bella is attractive. I realize that might sound anti-feminist and I certainly consider myself a feminist. But sometimes women just want to be rescued. Full stop.
I don’t understand why can’t someone have a story that they can fully engross themselves regardless whatever the novel, in even just for a moment. The beauty of the story is the fact it is not reality, most of the time reality sucks. I saw the movie first and then read all the novels I particularly like the story. I am not a twi mom nor teeny bopper either but I liked the story for what it was a simple love. Edward Cullen who is handsome character in the novel, is just a man that most women could admire after due to the fact that some men nowadays are very into themselves and the passionate love is something we all can dream about if that is what they want. Some people are realists, some people are into fantasy. Why can’t you just let someone like something without be criticized for it. Let it be, you can like your Harry Potter or Star Trek or whatever it is you like, I am not here to judge. Enjoy something for whatever its worth, if reading a specific novel makes someone happy then go for it.
In a word… LAME!
The thing about ‘Wuthering Heights’ is that it basically *is* a nineteenth century version of the cheesy, teen romance angst that ‘Twilight’ has exploited in this century. Emily Bronte was probably a better writer than Stephanie Meyer is, but, seriously, ‘WH’ kind of was the ‘Twilight’ of its generation. So, fair enough about the new packaging, I guess.
You’ve obviously never read “Wuthering Heights”, which was an original, seminal work of literature. It is not a romance novel, and Emily Bronte is way more than “probably a better writer” than Stephanie Meyer. She tells the story from several points of view, all with distinct voices and an incredible command of style and dialect.
While I personally love Wuthering Heights, you are totally entitled to your opinion. What bugs me is people assuming that just because one has a certain opinion, they’ve “never read the book”. It’s sad that people take such an oppressive stance when it comes to reading, which is a SUBJECTIVE experience. Just because someone doesn’t agree with you doesn’t mean that they haven’t read the book.
I deduced from the comments made by Cat, especially the one describing “Wuthering Heights” as a cheesy, teen romance, that she had not read the book. “Twilight” was not the “Wuthering Heights” of its generation, and I can’t imagine that anyone who has read the classic would make that statement. Therefore, I stand by my assumption.
That’s pathetic.
I’m a soon to be English teacher and I believe in doing anything to get students excited about reading. Whether you like Twilight or not, the point is it’s gotten kids back into books. Why not re-vamp (pun intended) classic book covers to gain more of a teenage audience. If it gets them reading it, who cares. It’s a good strategic plan and I hope it works for when I have to teach those classics in class.
Yeah, why bother to do your job as an English teacher (getting kids interested in good literature) when Edward and Bella can do it for you? And how pray tell will you sell Wuthering Heights to guys in your class and girls who aren’t Twisheep?
If this is going to encourage young readers to pick up a classic like “Heights” I’m all for it, just as long as people don’t compare it to Twilight I’m good.
Wasn’t Bella reading Mansfield Park in the series?
lol, nope, it was Wuthering Heights- Manfield Park would only have fit the story if she had ended up with Jacob at the end of the series!
This is an insult to Emily Bronte. To be associated with that work of glorified fanfiction written by a talentless greedy whale is a travisty. In 5 years, no onw will remember the sad fad named “twilight” these “new” versions of Wuthering Heights will be lost forever in the backroom of a Borders.
Like others have mentioned, at the time of publication, Wuthering Heights was critically bashed. WH is basically an angsty, teenage love story. It’s a “classic” now, because, even though it’s not very well written, it’s about a love that transcends everything.
I think a lot of people commenting in here have never read Wuthering Heights. I personally adore the book, but it’s not perfectly written. In that way, it reminds me of Twilight. Both stories show that emotional power (even if it’s not backed by great writing) is not something to be taken lightly.
Sharon, I hope to God that you’re not insinuating that Twilight will eventually turn into a “classic” like Wuthering Heights. If so I may have to go throw up. Twilight will be in the dustbin as soon as Breaking Dawn comes out in all of its heinous glory. I hate to bring up Harry Potter, but it’s still going strong 12 years after its release, and even it has a looong way to go. You think anyone will still care about Twilight in 2015? I don’t.
Once again, you are incorrect. “Wuthering Heights” was not critically bashed, though many critics didn’t understand its dark themes when it was first published. It is also not a romance novel, and the writing is incredible. Emily Bronte tells the story from several points of view, all with distinct voices and a masterful command of dialect.
Sorry, this was addressed to Sharon’s comment above.
Actually Wuthering Heights WAS critically bashed. You are giving reasons as to why it was bashed (which are accurate reasons), but it still was not accepted by critics of the time.
I actually don’t think that Bronte is a good writer. I think that her prose is very uneven (segments that drag take up a lot of the book, but interspersed throughout are “bursts” of emotion). I know a lot of people who don’t like the book because they could never get into the writing style.
However, for many of us who love the novel, what sticks with us is its emotional power. It’s an epic love story that leaves you breathless.
Comments have been that “Wuthering Heights” was universally bashed, which was not the case. Many critics didn’t like it, but not every single one.
To some modern readers, parts may ‘drag’, as they can seem to do with almost every book written in the nineteenth century. Emily Bronte was writing for the readers of her time, not those who wacth TV and go to the movies. Her command of the various voices in her book is really masterful, and I have read the book several times without feeling that it drags. It is about much more than “bursts of emotion”.
Re: Bronte’s writing style
That’s the saddest part to me about this being Emily’s only novel- that we didn’t get a chance to see her writing mature and gain consistency. It makes me very sad.
no
I really don’t care. It’s classic. I find it very funny and a tad bit awesome that Twilight is now even effecting classics. If it was a newer book then I would be agianst it.