For Friday's assignment, we will be reading
"The Power of Young Adult Fiction" from
The New York Times' Room for Debate forum. In this forum, you will find a short introduction to the issue and then links to different authors' commentary on the issue. There are seven different authors, so make sure to click on each one and read each article, or click on the links here:
Patricia McCormick
Joel Stein
Emma Allison
Sharon G. Flake
Lev Grossman
Matt De la Pena
Beth Yoke
Each of these authors has a unique perspective on young adult fiction. Which author did you find most interesting or compelling? Why?
And finally, just for fun, here is a little e-card for Joel Stein :)
Joel Stein's article made me a little mad. People have right to their own opinion, but your can't hate a book and people for reading it if you have never read it.
ReplyDelete(And personally I think it would be really cute to get engaged in "Cinderella's" (its Aurora's) castle in Disneyland!)
I don't think you should be publishing material if you can't even get it right.
I agree. Who cares what you read, its your choice. Who is he to judge. The guy Sounds like a Douche, saying that an adult should be embarrassed for reading a young adult book.
DeleteAlthough I think that young adult fiction should be read by all - I agree with Joel Stein when he says that "adults should read adult books". If you ask me there is way too much hype over these young adult books and not enough about adult books. I also think that reading classic novels and books by great writers is much more educational and easier for me (a 27 year old) to read. I am no longer at the age where I want to think about going to Hogwarts.
DeleteBritney, I'm with you. I have spent a good part of my life reading books, both young adult fiction and what Stein would consider "classic" adult fiction. The problem I find in Stein's article is that he (as he admits) has not actually read any young adult fiction. I have read young adult novels that are every bit as difficult and complex as any novel written for adults, and I have read adult novels (including "classics") that are, in my opinion, over-hyped and not worth a second read. Until Mr. Stein has sampled some of the best that YA fiction has to offer, his article lacks credibility.
DeleteI agree 100% with Beth Yoke's article. I used to hate reading, and I read so slow it took me no where. And then I read Hunger games, of all books, and it ignited something in me. Now on my free time I am searching for the new good book. I spent my summer reading book after book. This has helped me to read so much faster, which is helping me in school. You need to find those books you love so you want to read leisurely, and even if it is young adult fiction it is still going to help train your brain to read better and faster.
ReplyDeleteI like Beth Yoke's article as well. I am just fine with my teenagers reading Harry Potter and the Hunger Games. They are far more likely to begin reading more advanced literature as they get older because they picked up the habit of reading early.
ReplyDeleteI really liked Beth Yoke's article too. I also agree that "The Hunger Games" and "Harry Potter" are completely acceptable to read and they will help to create reading habits early so that people will enjoy reading throughout their life.
DeleteIs there anyone that has actually read an entire young adult fiction series that has criticisms of this form of literature?
ReplyDeleteyes people with a lot of time.
DeleteI like Lev Grossman. I think hes spot on. Maybe an adult would read something like the hunger games because its a fun read and probably a little less heavy than a super wordy adult book.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed Patricia McCormick I think she it the spot. Young adult writers aren't afraid to keep it simple but give great detail, which keeps the reader going and going. Until they are waiting in line to buy the next book just to find out what happens to their favorite character.
ReplyDeleteWhen I read these articles I don't see anything new in what people are interested in now compared to what they were interested in in the past. I don't think that there is a sudden change in peoples reading material to young adult fiction. If you look at music or any other art form the age at which they are most often trying to sell to is the teenagers. Hearing songs and reading books about love, dreams, and things that were not meant to be accounts for 99 percent of all the music I hear. Does anyone think that there actually has been a shift to young adult centered art?
ReplyDeleteI like what Joel stein talked about. he never really said that young adult books where bad but that he thinks that a grown adult should read something that will benefit them from reading, and help them learn, because he believes that learning comes from reading and he is right. When Joel Stein said that there was a reason way his teacher never gave him home work of playing video games, because his and our teachers know that we learn by applying our brains and thinking about the things we read.
ReplyDeleteI think that stein really didn't know what he was talking about. His comments are really ignorant towards literature as a whole. Just because the topic is Juvenal doesn't mean the content, theme, tone and plot can't be for the advanced reader. There are plenty of scifi novels out there that I would think are silly but have a good story and makes the person think. Not to mention that he is being a critic of something he doesn't know about. If you haven't read a lot of young adult fiction than you wouldn't know anything about it. When I think of the classics anyway I think of a really long story that usually is good but I wouldn't read it again. Who hasn't read Harry Potter or thought of reading it twice??
ReplyDeleteStein's article made me a little frustrated, personally I did not like the Hunger Games but that was more because it had that "fake" love story and I really don't like reading love stories any more. But I think it is silly to not like a book just because of the supposed "target" audience. The nice thing about books is that they transend age. I was reading A Little Princess at age 10 and I still read it now at age 20, the book has many good lessons in it, and it doesn't matter who the author wanted to read the book, as long as someone enjoys the book then everyone should be happy.
ReplyDelete