Week 13 Prompt

Growing up, I was a big fan of YA, coming of age when the genre was seemingly at its peak with Harry Potter, Hunger Games, Twilight, and other similar massively popular books. My interest extended into college as I continued to read YA and explore some of the New Adult genre like Sarah J Maas, Casey McQuiston, and Rainbow Rowell. Now, being a few years out of college, I find that when I pick up a new YA book, typically I don’t enjoy it like I used to or connect with the characters as much. It’s hard to tell if this is because I’m getting older and my tastes are changing or if the high demand for YA books has led somewhat to a decrease in quality, or some combination of these factors! Still, a couple of my favorite reads over the past year have been for younger audiences, like We Are Not Free and Everything Sad is Untrue. 

Despite my own changing tastes, I firmly support YA, NA, and graphic novels in libraries and encouraging adult readers who prefer these genres. One reason a person might prefer these is their high accessibility. Readers with a short attention span may appreciate that these novels are usually faster-paced and easy to follow. Additionally, they often have a more lighthearted feel than typical adult novels.

Though I have limited experience with readers’ advisory interviews, because of my time reading heavily in this genre, I will likely keep the question in mind during interviews. Adults may often think they have to pick books from the adult section. I know even I feel a little awkward walking into the children’s section every time I want to check out a middle-grade novel. No matter what, I think it’s important to encourage readers to pick out a book that interests them, not something they think they should read. Any format is valid that allows them to enjoy a book, whether that be through audiobook, graphic novel, or a book technically written for an audience twenty years younger than them.

A few years ago, I went to a conference for English majors and attended one session on YA books. The presentation I watched has remained in my mind ever since as an idea I want to enact someday in a library. They were primarily discussing teaching English in the classroom and how teens often have difficulty relating to the classics they are forced to read. The presenters suggested teachers pair a classic book with a popular YA book that has similar themes and then use comparing and contrasting discussion for students to get more out of the books than they would have from either one separately. Since I do not want to be an English teacher, I have often thought about ways to adapt this idea. For this discussion of adults reading YA, it would be really fun to pair an adult or classic book with a YA novel that has similar themes and have this available to check out as a pair!