This week’s prompt: Have you ever looked at the young adult book section in a modern bookstore and felt out of touch or old?
Hmmm. Yes and no, I suppose. There are usually some books that seem really immature and silly that make me realize that actually I’m probably no longer able to appreciate them – but then they’re also ones I likely never would have. So in that sense, I guess yes. But (perhaps thanks to my neurodivergence) the distance between teenaged and childhood me and the me I am today doesn’t feel that far. I often feel like I’m playing at being a grownup. I don’t remember what I was about to do when I came upstairs, but I remember events and feelings from when I was a child and young adult with absolute clarity. If I spend a bit of time thinking about any of those eras, I feel my way back into it. So while I now have the life experience to be able to see the forest rather than just the trees, I can also easily feel the emotions of teenagerhood and so the better written of YA books really don’t feel out of reach for me. I think where it falls down is over-focus on worrying about teen drama and the unrealistic expectations of young love. These lead to eye rolls. But these days I’m finding that a lot of YA books deal with important issues like racism, sexuality, identity, disability, mental health, abuse, trauma, loss and so many more. So because of this, and because we didn’t have these when I was that age, I can read them and just feel like I’m filling a gap in my own reading history and can relate because I’ve been through some of these things – some as an adult, but it’s not actually that different. So I guess I do look at these sections of the bookstore with a slightly jaded eye, but can also see so much there that is still relevant to me and still interesting. Now I also get to look for books I think my kid will like or could grow into, so that’s an extra dimension.
What about you guys? Any other adults who feel like YA is still worth reading? Any younger readers who still feel like this is their section? Anyone who wants to try reading YA but isn’t sure if they’re allowed (they are)?
The Book Blogger Hop is a weekly blog link-up that gives participants a different book-related question to ponder each week, and allows them to share their thoughts, find new blogs to follow and connect with new readers. The Hop was originally created by Jennifer at Crazy for Books and is now hosted by Billy at Ramblings of a Coffee Addicted Writer. To see a list of upcoming prompts go here.