I plan to be a diva someday . . . - Hornbook article on YA literature

I found this a bit interesting.   Okay, I'll admit, I found it a bit annoying.  I'm referring specifically to this line:  "with the literary crossover novel . . . young adult literature has matured into something virtually indistinguishable from the best adult literary fiction."

I realize there's probably supposed to be a compliment in there, to YA authors and/or to the teens we don't "condescend to" (from another section of the article).  But I'm left wondering:  Is the point of YA literature supposed to be that it be "virtually indistinguishable" from adult literature?  If that's the case, why bother publishing it at all?  Why not just let kids read the adult literary fiction from which YA lit is indistinguishable?

If Mr. Hunt is correct, and YA literature is changing in the way he says, it seems that YA authors are being given a choice, if they want to keep publishing:  Either write mindless chick-lit to get bookstore sales, fantasy which, at least in the schools I visit, mostly appeals to the "gifted" students, or write the type of "literary" fiction Mr. Hunt praises, which has little real audience, in order to capture good reviews and the library market.  Basically, we are being required to make the choice between challenging teens to the point where they will give up in frustration . . . or not challenging them at all.

In a recent blog entry thunderchikin(who happens to be president-elect of ALAN, the YA arm of the National Council of Teachers of English) bemoaned the lack of good books for boys on bookstore shelves.  professornana , another veteran teacher/YA lit guru, echoed these sentiments.  But which of the above categories appeals to boys?

The question is, I think, are we writing YA literature to make it look important, or to give kids something to read?

Discuss. 

Current Mood: annoyed