Back when I only had one friend in Calgary, and a lovely one at that, we used to go to popular, fun bars together in the hopes of finding our new best friends. Unfortunately, this didn’t work – but we did have some great conversation while at those bars.
Mostly, we talked about books. We are both insatiable readers, and can be a bit snobby about the books we fall in love with. Really, during those conversations we bonded over our mutual hatred for Twilight. In searching for a way to describe to each other just how much we hate Twilight, one of us blurted out something along the lines of “it’s like the Sirens of retail stores” and out of that comment a new hobby was born. We spent a lot of time discussing our favourite books and comparing them to retail stores.
Obviously we’ve already agreed that Twilight = Sirens (or Stitches) and we figured that out using the amount of class we deem the novel to have. Twilight is a terribly written, overly popular, easy book to read and we view Sirens in a similar way. The clothes are easy to wear because they are so inexpensive and trendy, but they are not well made and will fall apart quickly.
Clearly this is a very subjective way to classify a novel, but I’m quite biased and, as I mentioned earlier, snobby when it comes to novels so really, I’m okay with that. Another favourite novel is Time Traveler’s Wife, which we have decided is comparable to Banana Republic. Classy, well made/written, and quite popular.
What is your favourite book, and which retail store would you compare it to in terms of this classification idea?
P.S. To all of you Twilighters- I apologize.
{ 20 comments… read them below or add one }
Twilight=Sirens…so true! Lately I’ve been reading a lot of Sophie Kinsella/Jennifer Weiner-type chick lit which might be the Old Navy of novels (fun and cute but not a ton of substance). But some of my other favourites…East of Eden for example…are more like the Gap–more classic!
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I have always loved the novel ‘Circle of Friends’ by Maeve Binchy. I would compare that one to ‘The Body Shop’, I always forget its there, but each time I go back in I love it! I love this game by the way!
I love this post! I am going to classify all the books I read by this standard from now on.
However, I think there is something to be said for books that are easy to read or ‘fluffy’ as I would call them. I mean, if it gets people reading and talking about books, I think it’s a good thing. My objection to Twilight is more in the content, I worry about the message it’s sending about relationships, and what’s healthy. I would like to think that we can all differentiate between what is real and what is fantasy, but realistically, what we see in books and on TV influences our perception. I don’t like the idea of a 12 year old girl reading the books and then thinking its okay that her boyfriend is controlling (or worse abusive), and that it must mean he loves her.
Quite possibly I’m over-reacting, but I think it’s worth a thought, and possibly a conversation if you have kids who are reading the book.
Really? Time Travelers Wife? That book has “co-dependent” written all over it. I don’t understand why a woman would stay in a relationship when the guy always leaves her – he couldn’t even show up for their wedding. Ugh. Not a fan.
Favourite book has to be Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy: A triology in five parts, and I would liken it to those little shops which sell joke/crass/beer&weed propaganda. Here in Ottawa it’s called Happy Daze.
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Hahaha I also hate Twilight and I love your classification system. hilarious!
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Oh I love this game too. Better than six degrees of Kevin Bacon. So Umm let me attempt to be witty here.. .Jodi Picoult is Homesense. I love it and it’s quite affordable, trendy and stylin’ but I don’t get there often enough. Oh and Cordelia Strube is like Frilly Lizard a wee bit pervy and a rare treat to visit.
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Oooh this is fun…. My favorite book is Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov… and I would compare it to an expensive lingerie store, like La Perla. It’s sophisticated and well written/well made, but some of the stuff you see/read there really creeps you out.
I do a variation of this game with my friends, but we usually compare guys to retail stores or restaurants. Like…. Mike is like Denny’s, cheap and always accessible, but you feel kind of sick after you’ve been there. It’s super fun, especially when you have a couple of drinks in you.
http://www.ifyouhavetoask.wordpress.com
Consider me a kindred spirit who also does not get the whole Twilight hoopla!
Let me think….one of my favourite books (canadian too!) is Lullabies for little Criminals. Edgy, poetic, beautiful written, like an undiscovered indie shop you walk into not expecting to like anything, but finding something you love and cherish forever.
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What a fabulous way to classify things! I am the first to admit I read a lot of bad books (I’ll equate them to either Sirens, Stiches or Bootlegger) But, I have read a few great books this past year.
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen is fabulous. I would classify it as Nine West, if Nine West weren’t trendy. It’s rich (in content), well-made and completely worth it (time and price).
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Ooohh….this is fun. My favorite book is Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov… and it’s like an expensive lingerie store, like La Perla. Sophisticated and well made/written, but some of the stuff you see/read there creeps you out.
I play a variation of this game with my friends, but it’s usually comparing men to restaurants. For example…. Mike is like Denny’s… cheap and always accessible, but you often feel kind of sick after you leave.
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hmmm this is an interesting idea… well you already know that my favorite book is The Lovely Bones. I’m not sure what store it would compare to though… i’m thinking maybe that store where you can get T-shirts designed with anything you want on them. You go into with with a blank canvas and leave with something so personalized that no one else in the world has the same one.
ps – im not even going to comment on your hatred of Twilight. LOL I love the glittery vampires love story.
to each their own !
AWESOME! I’m SO glad to hear that you don’t like Twilight.
See my twitter post about my frustration on Twilight:
http://twitter.com/fleuris/status/5935921402
Good to know I’m not alone
I think I am the first Twilight lover to comment here so dont hate me please. lol.
I would just like to say in response to that one commenter Allison is I am wondering where did you hear/ read that Edward controls/abuses Bella in Twilight? Maybe you were not implying that it was an example from those books specifically but it seemed like it. If you werent then sorry! Anyone who thinks so clearly doesn’t “get it”.
And I also agree with the person that said that Time Travellers wife is just as bad in the whole “co-dependancy” or “neediness” theme. But I still like that book too!
My favourite book though is Memoirs of a Geisha. I guess the first thing that comes to mind would be something classy and timeless…like Chanel manybe?
In response to “Munchkin”…. Anyone who thinks Edward controls Bella doesn’t get what, exactly?
I’ve read all of the Twilight books, and I agree that Edward controls Bella. Their relationship is totally dis-functional and reminds me of the kind of relationship you find in the halls of any high school. Naive teenagers thinking they are soul mates and destined to be together, saying they can’t live without the other, threatening and manipulating each other emotionally. Considering the average age of the people who read Twilight, showcasing a relationship like that is incredibly irresponsible.
Obviously you disagree with this, and I respect your opinion, but I don’t think you can just dismiss the assertion that it’s an unhealthy relationship by saying that someone just doesn’t “get it”.
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I recently read “things i want my daughters to know” by elizabeth noble. I would compare this to Winners, but a classy one downtown Toronto or Calgary. The reason for this is everyone can find something they love in that store, just like everyone reads this book from a different perspective and gets something different they love from this book.
Hmm i am not really sure how to respond to that as I am not the best at putting what I intend to say into the right words.
I just do not think that Edward controls Bella in the books. Now I havent read them all like 10 times like some of those other fanatics but I can’t really think of an example where such a situation occurs.
And yes I do agree that it is a somewhat un-healthy and dysfunctional relationship. But I am sure that some people would agree with me in that when you find someone that has such a monumental change in your life, and you know your life will never be the same, you dont really have a choice. It’s like in the Time Travellers Wife, where she says she never had a choice.
Yes we all know its pretty unlikely that you will find your future spouse when you are 17, but hey it does happen to some people, and I’m sure if you were to ask some of those couples to remember back when they were that age, I’m sure they can relate to the feelings that Edward and Bella share towards each other.
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Eat Pray Love = Lululemon
Inspirational, stretchy and fits you well where you need it to, and also encourages you to deal with the not so great parts of you.
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one! um, i kinda love Twilight, but i’d rather compare it to my addiction to Forever 21 than Sirens (with F21 being, that place you go to feel like a crazy, naive teenager again, haha)
for what it’s worth, HerBadMother has posted some really good thoughts about the Twilight phenomenon, this was her most recent and i think a good read for all! (she’s a former prof, if that adds any weight to her argument?)
two! topic at hand: books as stores. totes agree with Sophie Kinsella as Old Navy… my favourite book is Gone With the Wind, but i’m having a hard time placing it as a store. (seems more like an art gallery or museum to me!)
second favourite books are Bret Easton Ellis novels, and those have to be Aritzia–you think it’s trendy and unique but then discover so does everyone else…
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Not familiar with that store (do they have them in the US?), but I’m with you about Twilight! My favorite book is Sense and Sensibility…not sure what store to compare it to…Ann Taylor Loft cuz it’s classy, but fun?
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Love this! Except Time Traveller’s Wife was awful.
I’d say Catcher in the Rye= American Apparel. For people who want to look “different” and non-mainstream without actually being a unique person.
Jane Austens= Anthropologie?