Jez's Anna N (the grande dame) writes on a WSJ piece regarding what appears to be the spate of dark YA novellas (wintergirls, if i stay, hunger games are cited) and makes great assertations in response to the OG WSJ. What neither article touches on however, is that teens today, on the whole are BUYING TRUCK LOADS OF SHIT all by themselves. Not to mention, are a viable market for despondent, weepy, crushing paperbacks that mirror the tumultuous vortex of suck called 'being a teen'.
When I was a teen, I had no income source of my own and had to get clearance to buy anything off the internet from my mom and use her card, meaning, i could not buy half, nay 1/32, the illicit shit i was reading/pining for. Au contraire, ma souer, has her own job, her own cash account, her own computer, and frankly more money in her checking account than yours truely. If i had those means at that age my bookshelf would be far more stacked and the Appalachian county library wouldn't have been half as creeped out by my requests.
Both articles point out that there is nothing wrong with writing/posing novels to teens with what an adult my perceive as risque material and both point out that teens aren't idiots; they know that shit sucks, why wouldn't they, they are teens. I am just glad that (a) more compelling books are being put on the market (i'll fucking read the shit out of wintergirls) and (b) that those lay-about kids are readin' at all.
No comments:
Post a Comment