And it started off so well November 26, 2007

The new Entertainment Weekly, I mean. After all, they did name J.K. Rowling the Entertainer of the Year. And the Shaw Report did say getting a library card is in.

But the Most Entertaining Places of the Year map? #8: “The set of Lost on Oahu, Hawaii”? Hello, did anyone look at an atlas? Or an actual map? The plane crash on this map is on the Big Island, not Oahu. Okay, so maybe it was an artistic thing*, with the Big Island providing more space for a plane and some palm trees or something. But it’s still the wrong island!!!

* And I’ll admit, my geography isn’t good enough to figure out if the rest of the illustrations are mapped correctly. Is New Jersey really behind Jon Bon Jovi? Or is that more like Delaware?

The “S” Word in YA Literature November 21, 2007

The “s” word in young adult literature is not the synonym for fecal matter, rather it’s that oh so snide remark that you and I have probably heard one too many times, slut. I’m not saying that anyone has ever called me a slut, but I’ve heard the term hurtfully used enough in my life to think of it as one of those pejoratives where there needs to be a movement to reclaim it. In Laura Ruby’s Good Girls the protagonist and her friends seem to get about as close to reclaiming the word as they can when they dress as virginal brides to the prom.

I recently read Sara Zarr’s Story of a Girl which also deals with this particular issue. What strikes me both in Good Girls and Story of a Girl is that neither girl is the dictionary definition of slut, rather they are mislabeled and maligned as such because of a specific event that changes their lives.

Webster.com defines slut as:

Main Entry:

slut

Pronunciation:

\ˈslət\

Function:

noun

Etymology:

Middle English slutte

Date:

15th century

1chiefly British : a slovenly woman

2 a: a promiscuous woman; especially : prostitute b: a saucy girl : minx

Audrey in Good Girls is photographed in an intimate situation and this photo circulates throughout school ruining her “good girl” reputation. Deanna in Story of a Girl is caught by her father making out with a guy in the backseat of a car. Neither girl is in a “committed” relationship and thus they are open to attack from their peers.

 

So here’s my little rant. Is sexual liberation limited to those who are 18 and older? Are we promoting literature that maintains the status quo where young women can have sex in stories but only if they’re in committed monogamous relationships? Good Girls and Story of a Girl do a great job of questioning the term slut and applaud both Laura Ruby and Sara Zarr for their brave stances. I can imagine that they’re getting a fair share of flack for their scrutiny of societal conceptions. Anyway, I’d like to write more, but my thoughts still aren’t totally fleshed out.

 

More thoughts on YA romance July 23, 2007

{As I don’t read all that much YA romance, if anyone disagrees/knows I’m wrong/can recommend some books, please leave a comment. I know I should read more YA romances before ranting about them, but since ALA boxes #1 and #3 (finally!) arrived, it ain’t gonna happen anytime soon. At which point I’ll probably have forgotten everything I wanted to say.}

Yes, there is such a thing as a YA romance. I just don’t read much of it. According to the Romance Writers of America, “Two basic elements comprise every romance novel: a central love story and an emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending.” “Emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending” is kinda vague, but to me means the folks whose relationship is at the core of the book fell in love and are together at the end, committed to each other and the relationship. So if there’s a YA novel with a central love (or “really like”) story and the couple is together and intends to stay together when the book ends, it’s a YA romance.

I read adult romances and YA novels with a romantic subplot, but not that many YA romances. The ones I’ve read, while cute, just haven’t done much for me. I’ve commented at several other blogs that I thought this is largely because I don’t find them as intriguing or exciting as YA books with a romantic subplot. I still think this is true, but I’ve also come to think that this is just part of a bigger problem, the lack of YA romances for older teens.

Most YA romance series (since most *true* YA genre romances are part of series, like First Kisses) seem to be targeted to middle schoolers. Even books with older protagonists, like the Simon Pulse Romantic Comedies, seem to be written for a younger audience who wants to vicariously live the life of a high schooler.

Where are the YA romances for older teens? A book with a bit of edge and maybe even sex or lustful thoughts? (If it’s appropriate to the story, and it doesn’t have to be graphic.) A book in which the protagonist’s main worry isn’t that he/she has never been kissed or never been in a relationship? When there is romance in a YA book for older teens, it’s often coming of age stories in the romantic-subplot-and-it-even-has-a-happy-ending vein, or the relationship is the focus, but as Liz says, “the break up with the boy is used to illustrate COA.” Or it’s part of a trilogy (or longer) and hence not a romance novel, if it even has a satisfying ending. There are lots of books with romantic subplots, but I haven’t come across anything so far that I would truly call a YA romance for older teens. Maybe Major Crush by Jennifer Echols, but that’s about it. A couple of MTV Books titles are geared for older teens and come pretty close, but ultimately are, in my opinion, more chick lit than romance (The Book of Luke, Adiós to My Old Life). Where are the YA books for older teens that focus on a romantic relationship and have a happy ending?

A number of teens at my library read adult romance novels, and they’re not the only ones. Do publishers think there’s no market for YA romances for older teens, or are they just willing to lose these readers to adult romance or Older Teen/16+ rated romance manga? (Isn’t there some statistic that romance readers read more books overall than the general reading public? I found this and this, but they’re not what I had in mind.)

Is Anyone Else Disturbed by this News? June 15, 2007

I was skimming the American Libraries Direct the other day and came across this article: Occult Concerns Jinx Teen Read Program.  I can’t believe Pickens County pulled out of the collaborative Summer Reading Program all together.  Couldn’t they just take another angle?  Say mystery fiction or learning about new things?  Not that I think that it’s all right to appease any kind of censors, but come on, give me a break!  Hate to see what kind of unrest a Harry Potter themed party would have on the community–they’d probably burn someone at the stake.

Spider-Man 3 May 5, 2007

vs. Yes, I was one of those people who saw Spider-Man 3 on opening night. If you ask me why, I’d say my boyfriend made me do it. I’m one of those homebody types who doesn’t like big crowds or blockbuster movies. Heck, the last movie that I saw and liked was the documentary Air Guitar Nation.

So onto the rant. Why was Spider-Man 3 140 minutes? I’d have been satisfied if they had ended it a third of the way through. No need to resolve anything. Just leave it hanging. An unresolved plot adds to the anticipation of the next movie. What’s up with the horrible acting? Not to name any names, but wth, Tobey Maguire can you say you want to break the contract and let somebody else have a crack at being Spidey, because obviously your heart wasn’t in it. The only redeeming thing about Spider-Man 3 was there were no nipple shots of Kirsten Dunst this time around.

Air Guitar Nation on the other hand was a refreshing little documentary that warranted 81 minutes of my life. How can you dislike a movie where the motto is “Make Air Guitar, Not War.”

How does Trisha Post So Many Blogs? May 4, 2007

Gayle and I are at our SAM training session, on break an happen to glance at the blog. We wonder how the hell did Trisha have the time to post two more blog entries? Especially after the hour 1/2 Asian-American chat last night. (We will post later, after spelling errors are corrected.) Gayle said Trisha does not watch TV. I’m sorry but I’m addicted to TLC, Comedy Central, VH1 and Oxygen. Go Tyra! Go Trisha with your prolific blog entries! We’ll try to keep up!

Things that Make Gayle go GRRRRRR! May 1, 2007

I am currently boycotting DC and Marvel for their crappy binding. I know graphic novels aren’t meant to be circulated as many times as they do at the library but throw me a bone people! Currently I am fixing my graphic novels with a heavy duty stapler. I know this obscures the art and makes the graphic novel aesthetically unpleasing but it seems to be the most effective way to keep my graphic novels together. Glue just doesn’t cut it anymore.

Graphic Novels, I love you, but until you change your ways I’m going to have to ignore you.