Young Adult Literature No Longer for the "Young"

Ten years ago it would have been considered immature and silly for an adult to read a novel intended for a teenage audience. However, in 2010 it's completely natural to find a mom reading the "Twilight" saga or a business executive riding the subway while reading "Harry Potter". Go into any bookstore and it's not just the kids perusing the young adult section. At Universities you can even find entire classes devoted to young adult literature.

In recent years, thanks to J.K. Rowling and her "Harry Potter" series, young adult literature has surged among adult readers. While some folks may have no idea who Stephenie Meyer, Suzanne Collins, Scott Westerfeld, Libba Bray, or Rick Riordan are, to those who read young adult books, they're just a few of the hot authors that any fan of the genre must read.

According to the Los Angeles Times, adult hardcover sales plunged by 17.8 percent for the first half of 2009 versus the same period in 2008, while YA hardcovers shot up by 30.7 percent.

Traci D. Haley, 31, is the moderator of the popular online community yalitlovers, which is hosted at the popular blogging site Livejournal. Boasting over 1,300 members and growing daily, the community isn't just for 14 and 15 year olds. In fact, many of its members are in the 30s, 40s and even 50s.

Haley explains what it is about young adult literature that draws her in.

"To draw teens in, especially reluctant readers, which so often describes today's young adults," she says, "writers have to 'get to the point'. YA books are so much more concrete and less flowery and abstract than most adult books. They jump right into the action. They also so often tackle edgier topics than adult books because these topics are the ones that teens want to read about."

The former teen librarian also points out the preconceived notions many have about young adult books.

"I can't tell you how many times I would recommend a YA novel, only to get that condescending look from an adult who would then sneer 'That's a KID'S book.' So many adults assume that because it's meant for 'kids', it means it's got no plot, characters they won't relate to, and that the reading level is too simple for them."

Megan R., 26, is a member of yalitlovers and says that to her, "Young adult lit authors have more of an imagination than adult authors" while Christine Bennett, 33, another member of yalitllovers, says she likes the genre because "I find that the emotions of the characters seem more sincere and honest as they try to puzzle their way through growing up and whatever problem they face."

Lizzie Skurnick, 36, who reviews adult fiction for publications including Publishers Weekly and Time Magazine, seems to agree, saying that YA books are "more vibrant" than many adult titles, "with better plots, better characterizations, a more complete creation of a world."

Lev Grossman, a book critic for Time Magazine put it simply: "I think young adult fiction is one of the few areas of literature right now where storytelling really thrives."

One of the reasons for the rise in popularity of young adult literature is the film industry, thanks to the "Harry Potter" and "Twilight" movies which have blown up at the box office. We've also seen "Percy Jackson & The Olympians" and" Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" come to the big screen, and now it looks like "The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins and "Uglies" by Scott Westerfeld have been noticed by Hollywood big-wigs. A lot of people who never paid attention or knew anything about young adult lit are going to the movies and getting an education, realizing that stories for young adults are not immature or simplistic.

The genre is so hot that even well-known adult authors like James Patterson and John Grisham are now writing young adult fiction, while you can find recommendations from authors such as Stephen King on the covers of some young adult fiction including Suzanne Collins' "The Hunger Games" series.

With an array of subject mater to choose from including romance, fantasy, mystery, historical fiction, realistic fiction, science fiction and humor, young adult literature is a force to be reckoned with.

YALitLovers Community, Livejournal.com
Susan Carpenter, Young Adult Literature Comes of Age, Los Angeles Times
Pamela Paul, The Kids' Books Are All Right, New York Times