What was the last book that you couldn’t put
down? Personally, I’m making my way through
The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa
Meyer, and I haven’t been able to put them down. The books are fun re-imaginings
of fairy tales amidst political intrigue, plague, and the threat of war.
They’re also very much Young Adult (or YA) fiction.
If you’ve read
the article by Ruth Graham that’s been making its way around the internet (or any of the billion
responses), you’ll know she thinks I should be ashamed
to read YA fiction. Graham disparages YA for its “pleasurable” reads, its
reliance on the teenage perspective, its frequently satisfying endings (where
has she been that she thinks this still happens?), and its ultimate failure to
be “literary." As someone who is now in my late-twenties (
shudder), I shouldn’t be entertained or entranced by anything
written from the perspective of a teenager.
Graham argues that I (alongside
teenagers and other literarily stunted adults) should aspire to more “grown-up”
reading. YA novels, in her perspective, are unable to teach us anything about
life. But let’s ignore the argument over whether YA is valuable, and instead
focus on the core of her argument: it is not worthwhile to read for any reason
other than the pursuit of sophistication. And, Graham asserts, YA fiction is
supremely unsophisticated.
Well, I say screw that. We have few enough individuals in
this country who read for pleasure anymore—and shaming people for the type of
book they choose to pick up isn’t helping the problem. There are thousands upon
thousands of legitimate reasons to read Young Adult fiction, but by far the
most important is this:
Because you want to.
So, in the spirit of fighting against this type of bigotry
and shaming, here is my list of YA books and series that you should definitely
pick up this summer! Some of these books share “deep” stories that rival many
of the adult fiction that Graham lauded, but some are definitely more fun romps
in sci-fi and fantasy. All, though, deserve a read!
Note: The lines of “Young Adult” literature are frequently
blurry, but all these books are usually, if not always, considered YA.
(Superheroesque gets a small kickback if you purchase through this link. Thanks for your support!)
Do you have any YA recommendations? Leave them in the
comments!
The short version of this blog post basically enforces a
truth that I hold dear—different people like to nerd out over different things,
and it’s never brave or cool or responsible to condemn people for enjoying
things that you may not personally enjoy. Let’s ignore the Slate author and
talk about ourselves for a moment. We’ve built this nerdy community, and within
it we should support each other and our passions. As Wil Wheaton said, “Being a
nerd not about what you love, it’s
about how you love it.” I won’t be shamed—you can’t take my books from me.
As a card-carrying member of the Justice League, honorary Star Fleet ensign, and a Ph.D student in political science, Amanda doesn't have much spare time on her hands. But when she does, she spends it gaming, nerdcrafting, marathoning shows on Netflix, debating Tolkien online, sewing costumes for cosplay, and writing on Geekphoria.net.
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