Wrapped Up in Books: In Defense of Young Adult Fantasy

When I first came across the opportunity to write a column for Insight magazine, I thought, “That sounds awesome, but what I can write about?” Luckily, my friends answered for me: “Books,” they said (as if to say, what else?). Because, yeah, I’m an English Lit major, my mom’s a librarian, and my prescription gets worse every time I go to the eye doctor: all telltale signs of a person who loves to read. But all you fellow bookworms out there know it’s not all rainbows and Nabokov’s butterflies. First, there’s that ever-dreaded label: pretentious. I bet you’ve already thought it (at least) once in your head while reading this column. What is it about name-dropping your favorite authors into a conversation that makes everyone roll their eyes and think, ‘Douchebag’? Or worse, ‘Boring douchebag’? My advice to all of you readers out there is to stay strong: the haters are just jealous of all the fun you get to have (see below). See, I can say all of the above without actually being pretentious because my favorite authors happen to be authors in a not-widely-respected area of literature, which brings me to the second of the Bookworm Hardships: you love Young Adult books and the world hates you for it. Young Adult fantasy books. Yes, it’s true. And, I’m sorry, did I say “a not-widely-respected area of literature”? I meant “the.” Now, I know where all your heads have gone. I’m not talking about the sudden outcroppings of “New Teen Paranormal Romance” that have popped up all over every bookstore in town. I mean the tiny, forgotten, cramped little shelf labeled “Teen Fantasy/Adventure.” It’s full of names like Tamora Pierce, Robin McKinley, Patricia C. Wrede, Lloyd Alexander, and J.K. Rowling. It’s full of award-winning yet underrated books that aren’t valued as highly as adult fiction because they are “popular” and “for kids.” This is where my problems begin. I will be the first to admit that there are bad YA fantasy books – just like there are bad books in every genre, from every century since the invention of the printing press – and, yes, unfortunately, lots of those bad books get popular, which in turn gives fantasy in general a bad name. The biggest challenge is trying to talk people down from those preconceived notions and get them to read a book – just one of the many fantastic YA fantasy books that are out there. After that they would discover a world of strong female heroines, methods of coping with grief and loss, and the tools to surmount any obstacle that life throws your way, not to mention fun extra bonuses like magic and action and plot. And it’s all set in the world of adolescence, when emotions are purer and stronger and everything feels more important – the world that is otherwise lost to us as we grow up. If you get through one of those YA fantasy books and you still can’t respect the genre – I’m not saying you have to love it like I do, but at least respect it – then I think the next step is to brick yourself into a cave with a few copies of War and Peace and enjoy your stale, solitary intellectual life. Remember, English Lit major right here, so I’m not disrespecting any of the old classics. I love me some E.M. Forster or some Jane Austen (yes, British social satire is where it’s at), but that’s a future topic for a future column. Right now I’m focusing my energies at the genre that needs it most, so take no offense, ye Classics lovers, and try blowing off some steam with a delicious copy of The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley or Fire by Kristen Cashore. I promise you, if you have a heart, or half a heart, you won’t regret it. And then you might get to share in the bittersweet third Hardship of YA fantasy fans and, indeed, all Bookworms everywhere: you just can’t stop reading. Ever. Be it three in the morning on the day before a final or nine at night when a paper is due. Just remember, when you find yourself trapped in that dark place where you can read 300 pages of your latest bookstore purchase in half the time that it takes you to grit your teeth and choke down 30 pages of your textbook… you are not alone.