 |
| The New Edition of the Book Contains a New Forward by Frost and Lynch |
is being published. At the height of Twin Peaks' popularity at the end of the first season, series creators Mark Frost and David Lynch commissioned Lynch's daughter Jennifer to write a media tie-in novel The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer (1990). Laura's secret diary would be introduced early in the show's second season with the arrival of Harold Smith—Laura's reclusive shut-in friend and confidant, who Donna Hayward would later find while exploring Laura's old Meals on Wheels route.
As Lynchian and beautifully bizarre as the Twin Peaks (1990-91) TV series and later prequel film Fire Walk with Me (1992), The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer painstakingly recreates the mindframe of the troubled teen from ages 12 to 17 as she copes with the onset of adolescence, wrestles with conflicting worldviews, comes to terms with her nightmares, and confronts her reality of sexual abuse. As a whole, these pieces to the Laura Palmer puzzle are insightful and the book's refreshingly honest depiction of her state of mind makes Laura's character even more compelling than ever before.
Just as many fans of the show either seem to love or hate the prequel film, the same might apply to this novel. But we agree with Matt Humphrey from The Twin Peaks Podcast, who expressed his opinion recently that reading The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer helps clarify, enrich, and improve the Twin Peaks viewing experience and prepares viewers for the shocking transition from the slightly lighter tone and content of the TV series into the rougher and more brutal film world of its prequel Fire Walk with Me.
Along with the The Autobiography of F.B.I. Special Agent Dale Cooper: My Life, My Tapes below, The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer is an excellent read for anyone wishing to expand their understanding of the complex town of Twin Peaks. Within its text, Laura expounds on her interactions with her family, friends, and townspeople, adding important details about these relationships. The Secret Diary is not your average merchandising ploy to exploit the popularity of a cutting-edge TV series, but is an important appendage to the story revealing new layers to Laura's saga that enrich the series as a whole and make Fire Walk with Me all the more significant and easier to comprehend.
The Canadian dance-punk band You Say Party's music video above brings to life some memorable scenes from The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer, including Laura's election to homecoming queen and her partying with her secret boyfriend James. We also catch a glimpse at a vital moment in which Audrey Horne spies on Laura comforting Audrey's emotionally disturbed older brother Johnny.
In the tradition of assigning talented writer family members to expand on the universe of Twin Peaks in print, Mark Frost's brother Scott Frost was given a similar assignment to deepen our understanding of Agent Cooper's life in The Autobiography of F.B.I. Special Agent Dale Cooper: My Life, My Tapes
. In the last episodes of the TV series, Cooper's former F.B.I. partner Windom Earle arrives on the scene. Earle's appearance comes across as a little random in the show, but this novel adds needed layers of depth to their back story unfortunately absent from the series. And once Twin Peaks was prematurely cancelled, this book became one of the few venues for fans to explore this complex storyline further.
"Diane... The Twin Peaks Tapes of Agent Cooper (1990) is an audio tape featuring Kyle MacLachlan as Special Agent Dale Cooper, who shares his notes and insights on the Laura Palmer murder case, as well as ruminate on his general worldview. He dictates these quirky messages via tape recorder to his elusive secretary at F.B.I. Headquarters Diane. Although not quite as rich and detailed as the novels, "Diane... The Twin Peaks Tapes of Agent Cooper combines all of Coop's recordings from the Pilot Episode through to the Season 2 Premiere and adds other additional recordings to better paint a picture of Cooper's initial impressions of the town and denizens of Twin Peaks. At only 45 minutes long, the tape is brief, but is still an entertaining supplement.
Note: Any purchase made via our web store or product links throughout the article contributes a small portion to the running of this site. Thank you for your support.
 |
| The Old Edition's Cover is a More Accurate Version of How it Appears in the Series |
. In the last episodes of the TV series, Cooper's former F.B.I. partner Windom Earle arrives on the scene. Earle's appearance comes across as a little random in the show, but this novel adds needed layers of depth to their back story unfortunately absent from the series. And once Twin Peaks was prematurely cancelled, this book became one of the few venues for fans to explore this complex storyline further.
Previous Article
31 LYNCHIAN DAYS OF CHRISTMAS
31 LYNCHIAN DAYS OF CHRISTMAS
Next Article
Mark Frost is giving away five autographed copies of The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer. Explain in a tweet why Twin Peaks still matters to you with the hashtag #TwinPeaks. Here is the url to Mark Frost's Tweet: http://twitter.com/#!/mfrost11/status/143758316517064704
ReplyDeleteI can't consider the Laura Palmer diary canon with its messed up timeline, placing Laura's death in the completely wrong year.
ReplyDelete