Book Lovers Inc.
Romance Novel Reviews, Author Interviews, Commentary
Young Adult: The Simpler Side of Life?
Sometimes I think people would say that I whinge more about YA than I read it, but that isn’t true. YA is like a friend or relative I turn to when everything gets too much. YA provides a simpler outlook on life devoid of adult issues and ways.
I have often said that it would be nice to be a kid again, when times were simpler. All one had to worry about was our friends, our homework and what movie we really wanted to see when our mum’s would let us go. Our biggest issue in life was a boy/girl not liking us or one of our friends giving us the silent treatment. Compared to what I have to deal with as an adult…that seems like heaven.
Yet young adults in general are so eager to grow up so it is hard to find a balance in YA literature that really hits the nail on the head for me. A simple friendship or romance, fourteen year olds having their first kiss and getting all gooey eyed about it. YA fiction for me needs to be in the thirteen to sixteen year age group for me to class it as YA, any older and the characters think they are adults and it becomes annoying.
YA is simple. You don’t get adult problems in YA like work, sex, money and real relationships. Everything still has that innocence about it because the characters are young and naive. A kiss means you have a boyfriend, a simple fight means you have lost a friend but it means she might also come back. School will end someday and life has only just begun.
Adult literature can sometimes be depressing because of the adult issues. People trying to leave their mark on the world, who are still trying to etch out an existence. The complexities of men/women and relationships, of marriage and living together, of money and arguments and not being able to escape.
Sure the adult heroes and heroines can have a lot more fun with their freedom, like going to different countries, parties and meeting exotic people, but everything is done with the burden of being older, of knowing that its all going to end soon and sometimes wondering why you bother in the first place.
YA doesn’t have any of that. It has young love and occasionally planning your dream wedding, dream holiday and dream job. The possibilities are limitless with YA characters, and they think that too.
YA is my escape from the adult world. Back to when times were simpler and the dreams were infinite.
Share This Post
Subscribe and stay up-to-date
11 Comments
« Guest Post: Being an Author, Top 10 by Sherry Ficklin + Giveaway Next Post
Review: A Blue So Dark by Holly Schindler »
Unfortunately Google Friend Connect will stop working for non Blogger blogs at the start of March.
To stay up-to-date use one of the other options above to subscribe to the newest Book Lovers Inc. action.Thank you!
| |||||||||
| 5 Stars: Perfect! I Love It! | |||||||||
| 4 Stars: Awesome Book! | |||||||||
| 3 Stars: I Liked It! | |||||||||
| 2 Stars: Not bad, but maybe not for me. | |||||||||
| 1 Star: Didn't like it! Did Not Finish it. | |||||||||
 | | | | | |||||
Blog RSS Feed
Follow Me on Twitter
My Facebook
I actually turn away from YA because of all the issues. Too many spoiled bitchy kids, too much angst, drama, everything is so bigger than life.
But some keep it real 🙂
I first started reading YA as a way of reccing books for my teenage daughter, it worked out amazingly well, it is a great conversation starter with your kid!
Much to my surprise I enjoyed them…alot. Like you I found it did take me back to those days where everything was just so HUGE boys, friends, parents you know the whole deal. On the other hand well written YA doesn't bullsh*t its readers . I would think it would be a difficult genre to write, with so many other distractions for teens there has to be a pretty good hook to get them there and more importantly to stay.
Cheers,
Carol
YA reminds me of what it was like when I was a teen. I can relive all those emotions. The good and the bad. I miss it.
I agree that YA problems are a lot less complex. Anything is possible. You still have a whole life before you.
A second reason why I like YA, a pretty stupid one actually, is that there is no sex. So many adult books advertise sex being love. To me, that just doesn't cut it. Sex does not equal love. In YA books love is so innocent and pure. Every little touch is a world of different, every smile is worth swooning for. I kind of like that carefree version of love once in a while (:
I'm not a big YA reader, but the few I have read were not very simple LOL. Lotsa angst!
I don't read a lot of YA. The ones I have read were sort of dark.
I do find that YA books are more linear in plotline. I somehow started reading YA years ago when a pen pal's daughter was 8 years old and her dad (my pen pal) would let me know what she was reading and I'd send some suggestions.
Then after a few too many depressing post-apocalyptic/dystopic YA books (especially "Tender Morsels"), I turned to romances for guaranteed HEAs. I still read YA books, of course. I love E. Lockhart!
It's funny because this is exactly why I DON'T read YA. With teenagers, everything is black and white and straightforward whereas I find the nuances and the gray areas to be the interesting stuff.
Indeed, some YA can be "more simple" compared to adult lit. And that can be attractive every so often as an escape. But I've noticed that more and more YA is 16-year olds who behave like adults. Sure, they're going to school and have a parent or two calling the shots…but the age and behavior just don't match up. 's Weird.
Most of YA books are simple, but other ones touch in delicate situations like teen pregnancy, drugs, jail and other things like that, but other times YA books are so innocent and pure, that you love them, most than the adult ones. So, I like to split my reading time between adult books and YA 😀
I don't think YA is simpler than adult books, but there is something about the way they are written that makes them easier to read.