The Twilight Nod & Smile

So melydia posted today about The Twilight Series and pretty much summed up my feelings about Twilight better than I could (except that I HAVE read some Twilight fanfic but haven't read the Edward POV book yet, though I've saved it to my computer). I really like some of the characters (when I'm not hating them) and I like thinking about their world, but I think it's badly written and has bad content and bad stories. (So much ruined potential, I think) Yet I snarfed down every one of the books and didn't think twice! I love some of the concepts (the dilemma about turning someone into a vamp, the protective werewolf pack, the new twists on the mythologies, etc.) Hmmm. Liking the concept but hating the writing? Remind anyone of my thoughts on LOST?

Anyway, I went to Borders during my lunch break today to secure a crucial piece to the costume I'll be wearing to the annual DADA Halloween party on Saturday. I found a gorgeous owl bookmark that matches the theme of all the items my coworker wants for her not-yet-born baby. She requested we get her out favorite childhood book, and I got Winnie the Pooh (he'll grow into it). But I thought the bookmark was PERFECT (he'll grow into that, too).

So when I checked out, I had two items: an owl bookmark and something Harry Potter. I set them on the counter and offered over my Borders rewards card. As the guy at the checkout scanned my card and looked at my purchases, he asked, "Do you like Twilight?"

Now, I have NO idea why he would ask me this. I'm nearly 30; I might look young but I'm not a teenybopper by any means. Maybe he saw "Harry Potter" and thought "Twilight"? If so, the man is TOTALLY out of the fan scene and doesn't realize that the two groups are growing more like Star Wars vs. Star Trek every day. There are many people who love both... but, in general, the groups hate each other and like hating each other. Twilight brings a lot of tension, actually. Besides the Twilight haters, you have the Team Edward vs Team Jacob thing.

So, what did I say to him? The conversation went as follows:

Him: Do you like Twilight?
Me: Hmmm. Good question...
Him: What, you don't know?
Me: I can't say I liked it exactly. Don't get me wrong, I read every single book. And I love some parts. But I don't know if I can say I like the BOOKS exactly...
Him: I can understand that. It's the writing I like, not necessarily the content. I think they're really well written. Especially for someone's first book series, you know?

At which point, all I could do was give him the patented "Twilight Nod and Smile". What could I say to THAT? A guy in a bookstore thinks the Twilight books are WELL-WRITTEN? Has he READ a book recently? The Twilight series is a lot of things. And, once again, I love a lot of things about the books. But they're hardly a series I would recommend to a general audience. And they're HARDLY WELL-WRITTEN!

Was it opposite day today and people just forgot to tell me?