Dear Fellow Bloggers,

This was a very interesting project. Through my 10 pages, I have learned so much about the reasons why young adult literature ticks. I have learned that the young adults have more influence than the parents who want to censor the books, because the young adults are the people who are reading the words. I learned that a lot of reasons are reasons to read or censor young adult literature. Reasons like love. Love of another person, love of a substance, love of something they can’t have. Hate is another reason. Hate of a race, hate of an idea, hate of an institution, hate of oneself. Self Image follows almost every ya text, from Judy Blume to Zoe Dean. The awkwardness of young adults is apparent in every high school around. The awkwardness of characters is embraced as easily as it is loved. Young adults need real characters, real situations and real things to think about.

For my resources, I think that Google Reader helped me more than any other resource, however, it defiantly took me awhile to figure out what exactly to subscribe to. I learned that educational blogs have the best opinions, and newspapers really don’t care about the ups and downs of young adult literature. I loved reading about what the authors had to say about their characters. The characters are vivid, alive and real. That is the true reason people read YA lit. The characters, the problems and the ideas are real. They are imaginable, scary and through provoking. The fact they can also be a little scandalous only makes it better. I believe that the authors, the words and the character are so important to the world of literature. The young adult texts open up a world of new ways of thinking of things, better yet a way of dealing with things that young adults cannot deal with by themselves.

These books are the lifeline for so many people. The young people, the people that will one day grow up and the old people. These are the kids who we want to teach about conflicts, resolutions, love and difficulties. We want to teach them these things with these books, because one person cannot have all the answers. I won’t have all the answers for the family I want in the future. But I believe these books open doors to more books, which opens windows and cupboards and boxes that contain the knowledge of so many beautiful minds trying to make the world a better place one book at a time.

So yes..these books are good.

Sincerely,
Lander C. Bachert

I was thinking earlier about why so many YA books are censored. I've covered the idea that they've got serious stuff in them, that there are a variety of topics that can be enclosed under the title 'Young Adult Literature." I'm wondering, however, if it is the young adults that rebel against what they're reading, or if it is the "Older Adults/Not Young Adults/Adults" who have issues with Of Mice and Men, Huckleberry Finn, and I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. Trying to dig a little deeper into this topic, I decided to look into the website http://cynthialeitichsmith.blogspot.com/ or Cynsations. This website interviews authors of children and young adult literature, and has fairly recent updates. The newest author interviewed was with Lori Williams, who wrote When Kambia Elaine Flew in from Neptune (Simon & Schuster) and Shayla's Double Brown Baby Blues (Simon & Schuster, 2003). The interviewer and operator of the blog, Cynitha Smith asked Ms.Williams how she handles the pressure to self-censor “uncomfortable” material. She answered fairly bluntly saying,

“I have definitely been censored, but no matter what I will continue to write
what I write. I deal with difficult subjects because I know that there are
children who are struggling with difficult lives. I've met victims of sexual,
physical, and substance abuse, children who have been locked up for robbery or
assault, and children who were just unfortunate enough to make a bad decision
about sex. I've met them, and I was one of them. When I write I write for and
about those children. I know that this sometimes makes adults uncomfortable, but
we often live in an uncomfortable world.”

Cynthia Smith also interviewed Laura Ruby, the author who wrote Lily's Ghosts, a book that is currently being challenged in Florida, due to references to ghosts. Ms. Ruby discusses the issue of censorship as well. She takes a slightly different approach, understanding that censorship is appropriate in some situations, yet, defiantly not in others.

I want to say that I think it's perfectly appropriate for these parents to
select books they feel are right for their kids. What I have a problem with is
when parents try to choose books for everyone else's kids. I think the only
response is to keep writing the kinds of books you need to write. And to
acknowledge to those who complain that no single book is going to be right for
every child.

That is the truth too, isn’t it? The battle for Young Adult literature sits firmly with who? With the parents? With their parents? With the administration, or the general public. Well, of the power doesn’t sit with the parents, sadly, not with the teachers either. Instead, the literature sits with the young adults of course. Because if young adults can do nothing else, they can sit in a quiet corner and read uncomfortable topics, and like it.

Girls in Young Adult literature are a key supporter of the flurry of literary devourment of these books. Not to shun the male population, as they no doubt poured over millions of books themselves, but this is a deeper more personal look as to why young adult books are so popular with girls. Possibly starting with Are you there God, it’s me, Margert. And then flourishing through all Judy Blume, The Baby Sitter’s Club, Nancy Drew, Sweet Valley High, not to mention the entire section of Chiclet now created for the young, hip and charming young ladies of today. What are these girls seeing in the books? What is it about Nancy Drew, or Judy Blume that sends the young female population away into a corner of imagination and recognition.

Perhaps it is nothing more than an escape. At young adult age, girls are having a rough time of it. Some of them are tall, mature and beautiful, while the larger majority of young ladies struggle with height, weight, skin, emotions and boys. Good grief, deliver us from the boys. It is a difficult time, however, authors like Judy Blume understood the issues surrounding pre-teen/teenhood for American girls. They understood the transition between what our mothers\grandmothers are teaching us, and the influence of new role models that varied from pop singers to soccer players. Jackie Seidel , a grad student from the University of Alberta discusses this very topic in a research paper for one of her English Lit classes. She states that:

“The books (in her case mostly Sweet Valley High and Babysitter’s Club) gave her
an imaginary world where she could be everything she wasn’t: Thin. Beautiful.
Popular. She explained how the characters in the stories, while usually not
extremely rich, were well enough off to afford the kinds of clothes and
activities she could not. They had boyfriends and great families. They were
relatively intelligent and successful in school if not the top students.
Everyone liked them. They were all-round perfect girls. They lacked nothing.
Their lives were easy and fun."

In essence, she is correct. At least for me. The books gave me a retreat, a place where the characters spoke to me more frankly than my mom, and more directly than my best friend. The characters experienced the same things as I did, from bad grades, bad boyfriends, good hair, best friends..but more importantly, they were finding their place in the world, like me. The comfort of a character who relates to your everyday is the reason Judy Blume will never be far from English teachers’ grasp.

Let’s talk about violence in young adult literature. More specificially, let’s talk about the big “W” word, war. The concept of war is an idea that many young adults haven’t quite mastered yet. As we are in an age of unbridled video game violence, television violence and new caster violence, it can be very confusing for a student to try and understand the true devestation behind war. Colleen Mondor a writer for Bookslut discusses the importance of young adults needing authors to help them understand the violence that surrounded their every day life.

“…..But young adults need war books, maybe even more than adults do. All too
often it is teenagers who fall for the drums of war, for the lure of proving
oneself and finding great adventure on a battlefield. Suicide bombers are
generally young, and so are infantry soldiers. They might fight for different
causes and use different methods, but the compulsion is frighteningly similar --
go to war, risk your life and you will be remembered forever. It’s far more
significant than being the coolest kid on the block or in your high school --
it’s war, and if you find yourself there then you find everything; you become
more than you ever thought possible. Or you just die; and the killing part is
the part that most American teens really don’t have a clue about.”

The site displays several books that can be used for teaching or educating students about the realness of war.

Deogratias, A Tale of Rwanda by J.P. Stassen
The Foreshadowing by Marcus Sedwick
Megiddo's Shadow by Arthur Slade
Dateline:Troy By Paul Flieshman, Gelnn Morrow, Gwen Frankfeldt
House of the Red Fish By Graham Salisbury

War is a particular type of violence that parents, grandparents and other figures often have a difficult time discussing. In fact, war is a difficult subject for any person to grasp the idea of. Young Adult literature that tackles this particular social disaster seeks to open the door to reality for students. I read one book several years ago called Postcards from No Man's Land by Aidan Chambers. This book opened my eyes to the social life behind the bombs, the blood and the death. It was simply written, and beautifully constructed for a young adult to begin to emphasis with the absolute heartbreak that surronds war. This topic is absolutely essensical for young students to understand, as Colleen Mondon stated, the young adults are the people fighting and dying for the most part. The knowledge a young student could gain from a well crafted book on war could change entire generation. Perhaps that is a little too ambitious, however, it definantly could not hurt to have a better understanding of the reasons that wars begin. Haterd, land, money, pride are all valid war starters in most societies. The graphic nature of some Young Adult war books of course brings in the issue of “how graphic is too graphic?” How much blood, death and dying would a young person have to read to get the point? Perhaps instead we should be asking how much real blood, death and dying do we need before we get the point?

One topic that is found throughout almost every YA text is the topic of love. The idea of love has several interpretations throughout these texts. There is romantic love, sexual love, love for oneself, love for a family member, love for a new experience and love for a feeling, event or sensation. Needless to say, the idea of love is a topic that often creates a challenge for YA books.

Love, and especially sexual love is a topic that pushes YA texts to the banned lists faster than any other topic. Surprising almost the quickness to jump on a literary text, while the media conveys the same topics over and over again..Every single day. That however is another blog for another day.

Every adolescent experiences love. They may love their family, their significant other, their pet, or some intangible object. It is not a shock that YA authors incorporate the frustrations of all types of love through out their works. Many characters struggle to find love for themselves. This lack of self lovin’ comes from devastating events in their past, or simple feelings of displacement. This feeling is one that most people can identify with.

Romantic love is another topic that is discussed frequently in YA texts. And no wonder, romantic love is discussed through every genre of literature. Romantic love is a fascinating topic. Young adults especially, who have recently evolved from kicking, chasing and teasing people they cared for into shy, awkward beings full of emotion. Judy Blume’s text capture these bumbling, awkward and clueless times perfectly. Blume’s books, however, sit proud at the top of most banned book lists today. It is interesting to think perhaps, that the challenges against love centered books moves against social ideals of how young adults should acquire and experience love. A quick paragraph from a library website highlights why YA authors connect so easily with their readers. Love, as an emotion is simply one more obstacle for today’s young adult population.

As teens are their own breed, so is the literature written for teenagers its own
genre. Young adult — also known as YA — books typically explore the rigors of
the years between childhood and adulthood when kids’ bodies are changing and
they feel awkward and self-conscious, or outcast or isolated, as they strive to
find their footing in a world that seems to have shifted around them. At a time
when emotions fluctuate wildly, friendships and loyalties change, and life in
general is confusing, books written specifically for teens offer up protagonists
who are experiencing similar changes, and situations that pose the same
challenges, confusion, and pain.

http://www.sierrasun.com/article/20060920/LIFE/60919003

Is YA lit simply a form of cheesy entertainment? At some point this idea has to be discussed. There are several topics in YA literature, love,drugs,friendship,growing up,family,sex...but those topics can also be found in dime store romance novels. YA lit is known for it's entertainment value. Think of Harry Potter, there is hardly a literary person around who hasn't read at least one Harry Potter novel. Going back to my trusty research method, I plugged in "Harry Potter" as a search topic. Facebook could not even could the amount of people at GVSU that used Harry Potter as a favorite book. There were 52 full pages of faces who can't get enough Harry Potter. These people stemmed from all reaches of Grand Valley. Comparing that to the 18 people who loved Moby Dick, there is definantly something going on here.

So, what do we think about YA Lit as simply a factor of entertainment? Personally, I think the Harry Potter phenom was one of the most amazing things to happen to a literary community. I believe that sometimes the kids of today are so 'classiced out' that they need to find a safe haven in reading. Think of Roald Dahl, James in the Giant Peach, The BFG, The Witches. Those are classic young literature, and those books suck you in, making the reader enjoy not only reading, but enjoy the messages the writer is sending out.

In a particualry interesting interview of Susan Juby (Author: Acidental 'Alice, I think') She talks about two interesting opinions of YA literature. She touches on why YA lit is so interesting, as well as why readers soak up the words, even with out profound literary meaning attached.

Well, there's so much frickin' boring literary fiction. Absolutely beautifully
written, going nowhere. I think people are tired of that. Maybe YA has become an
option because people have to go somewhere. Most of YA really does have the
basics -- the stuff that my editor made me do, because I was very much "plot is
passé" when I first got published. "I need a plot? I don't care if it's
episodic! I like it like that!" And he said no, it needs a beginning, a middle
and an end. So that's something I had to work on. It was because I had my
undergraduate degree, you know.

Susan Juby also discusses the idea that some young adults need something to read. The need downtime away from the noise of tv, and the movement of their everyday lives.

...then there's that whole A-List, Gossip Girls type. I did an interview
on CBC's Sunday Edition about those books, and my job was to be on the side
of them, so I talked to all these young women who like those books -- smart,
interesting, nobody's-doormat kind of girls -- and they said. "You have to
vigorously defend those books because we like them. Our lives are incredibly
stressful and these books are like candy. We love them, we're fine, we can
handle it."http://thetyee.ca/Books/2006/10/11/AliceIThink/

So, YA Lit as entertianment? Sure, why not. YA lit as a way to get an entire generation moving forward into becoming involved readers. Sure, why not. I say, read on my friends, read on.

Is YA lit a way to use critical thinking? Looking back over the classical works that I read as a middle school/high school English student, I remember a lot of emphasis on works about, by and for older readers. Take for example, The Scarlett Letter, or Moby Dick or The Crucible. All of these books hold deep literary signifigance, and are obviously important in the history of literature, but is it possible that the conflicts and morals of the story are so embedded in literary greatness that their messages are lost among younger readers?I believe that YA lit is an amazing tool for to begin critical thinking. If the stories are placed into a context that the reader can associate with, the deeper meanings can be understood. Thinking is not often pushed while reading think, analytical texts. The works are so bumbling to the younger mind that most thinking about the work comes in a question and answer base. Not to be at fault with the educational system, there is just only so much a student can do when the text is not interesting to them.
Most readers remember the first book they read that really made them think. Made them think not only while in class, but outside of class, or in a conversation with a peer. Many of the first books that do this stem from the YA lit circle. Think Judy Blume, Catcher in the Rye or The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Doing a little self research, I plugged in "Catcher in the Rye" as a search topic., in my Facebook account. Just through my network of friends there were 489 people who listed Catcher in the Rye as a favorite book, compared to the 18 people out of every facebook user at Grand Valley State who listed "Moby Dick." Not very detailed research, but it makes a slight statement.Critical thinking happens only when the reader is engaged enough to think.
A blog I found agrees with this idea, debating the richness that YA or Banned Books have for young adult readers.

As college students, it is easy for us to dismiss the banning of "The
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn," "Of Mice and Men" or "The Scarlet Letter" as an issue solely for librarians and adolescents. Yet, for banned book week, it is
important to consider what richness we might have missed out on while growing up
because of censorship. What would elementary school have been without Judy
Bloom? Or high school without "Brave New World" or "1984"? These books provide a different perspective on the world, further demonstrating that we do not live in a homogeneous society. If we value this diversity, it is important to protect the freedom to hold unpopular opinions or write about controversial ideas. The
rise of new ideas depends upon such differences in outlook.

http://acrazycatlady.blogspot.com/2006/09/often-banned-books-broach-critical.html

These differences in outlook stem from the student's ability to think for themselves. I believe that YA Lit is so incredibly important in this sense. Although Banned books is not my major topic, it follows right along with this idea. A editorial from statesman.com-http://www.statesman.com/opinion/content/editorial/stories/09/26/26sanchez_edit.html
Also hold the opinion that students should be allowed to dig into texts with a little cruder material.

Some people believe students are best prepared for the real world by reading
explicit depictions of sexuality, abuse and war. If books depict risky behaviors
such as drug use and smoking, so be it. People who fall into this camp want
books where most students will encounter them — at school, with unrestricted
access. The other camp prefers that such books require a little more effort to
obtain and potentially greater parental guidance.

I once had an English professor that told me, "If the text does not disturb you, or make you uncomfortable, it is not worth it, because literature is there to make you think." Amen, my friend.

The Henry Louis Gates debate took a swing in a direction we weren't particular prepared for. The entire lecture was highly entertaining, proving once again that really smart people are usually really funny as well. Regardless of Gate's bum knee (which he proudly displayed to the entire room) and slight case of the giggles he put forth several important philosphies about education. Although the lecture didn't actually sit down and simmer over the digital divide, he did spend a good portion of his time discussing W.E.B. Du Bois. Being a history geek, I loved all the information. It was very interesting to learn so much about someone who is regarded in history as important, but has always lacked somewhat of a personality in my text books. Gates not only gave Du Bois a personality, but brought to light the importance of affirmative action.

Currently, there is a debate on whether to maintain or disband affirmative action. Gates, although he did not specifically voice his option appears to be the type of intellectual that would definantly be pro-A.Action. In Michigan, the debate over affirmative action has been running rampant since the U of M injunction of unfairness by the people affirmative action did not help. At this particular moment, the NAACP (founded by Du Bois, loved by Gates) is meeting to help provide information regarding the Affirmative Action proposal. The U of M president is digging in her heels to try to keep affirmative action. The Proposal is being layed out as a pro-civil rights movement. However, it is quite difficult to imagine it being so when people are granted jobs, college admissions, and other civil rights because of monetary strength.

When voters go to the polls in November, they will decide the fate of a
constitutional amendment banning affirmative action based on race or gender in
public hiring, contracts and college admissions. Sunday, more than 600 people
attending the Saginaw Branch of the NAACP's annual Freedom Fund banquet heard a plea to make that fate death. "We need to make people aware that this initiative is not about civil rights," said Leola Wilson, Saginaw Branch president. "It's not civil, and it's not right." Appearing on the ballot as Proposal 2, the
constitutional amendment is nearly identical to one California voters approved
in 1996. Wilson told the crowd gathered at the Horizons Conference Center in
Saginaw Township that the NAACP has vowed to defeat the measure. University of Michigan President Mary Sue Coleman, the speaker, also urged defeat of the
proposal. Coleman said Ann Arbor-based U-M has become the face of diversity in
higher education as a result of its successful U.S. Supreme Court fight in 2003
defending affirmative action and the use of race in admissions. Since then,
Coleman has become a national spokeswoman on the educational value of
affirmative action and diverse perspectives in the classroom. "It is a role we
welcome and continually seek to improve," she said. Despite the high court's
decision, Coleman said, affirmative action progress remains under attack. The
proposed amendment would eliminate opportunities for women and minorities to
have equal access to jobs, education and contracts in Michigan, she said. "We
still have tremendous challenges before us, as a university and a society," she
said. Colleges and universities across the country, she said, are succumbing to
a chilling effect that is paralyzing scholarships, admissions and initiatives
for under-represented students for fear of court challenges.
http://www.mlive.com/news/sanews/index.ssf?/base/news-20/1159192202252010.xml&coll=9&thispage=2

Henry Louis Gates showed an entire room of people that just one person can infact start a idea, an movement that will continue on throughout history. Gates showed Du Bois's dedication and fierce determination in continuing to promote AA equality. Why now, with so much 'progress' are legislators seeking to back track. It is portrayed as the only equal way for everyone to get the job, the school and the place in life that they deserve. It is a little hard to imagine, however that everyone has the same opportunies as everyone else. Can a poor kid from the hills of West Virgina gain the same SAT score that a wealthy kid from New Hampshire? Opportunities, all any group of under representated people have wanted are opportunties. It is not as if race/gender issues have disappeared from the radar. Women, in general, still earn 20-30,000 dollars less, working in the same jobs as men. Inequality is everywhere, Gates saw it, he pushed it out into the open with the Katrina video.

So, is affirmative action equal action? I am just not smart enough to know the answer. But I believe that if we can help someone reach their potential that is probably a good thing. My honest belief is that the smartest and the brightest will get where they are suppose to go. If you are Harvard material, one would hope that you could get into Harvard. So, should a kid with a 3.4 gpa from downtown Charlotte, NC be worth more than a 3.7 from Bloomington Hills? I don't know, however, I'm sure Mr.Gates would have an opinion.

I came upon some literature last night that follows along with my ideas for my online blogging adventure. As it turns out, the week we are currently sitting in is the official "Banned Books Week." Not to be confused with other 'official' weeks, such as "National Talk like a Pirate week," or Nat'l "PB&J" week, Nat'l banned books week is a week where the young adult literature junkies can sit down and discuss what and why some of their topics create contraversy. So what is BBW all about?

Banned Books Week (BBW) celebrates the freedom to choose or the freedom to express one’s opinion even if that opinion might be considered unorthodox or unpopular and stresses the importance of ensuring the availability of those unorthodox or unpopular viewpoints to all who wish to read them. After all, intellectual freedom can exist only where these two essential conditions are met." For the many libraries that observe Banned Books Week, it's a chance to educate the public about their freedom to read and challenges to that freedom. -Elizabeth Kennedy @ about.com

http://childrensbooks.about.com/od/censorship/a/bannedbooks.htm

The real question here is what is all the fuss about? Perhaps the biggest crisis involving banned books is the content teachers may be giving students without a parental nod. In many cases the teachers come out in banned books situations as the overall bad guys. That the teachers are trying to fill students' heads with violence,drugs, homosexuality or religious views that may influence the student to become different than they were previously. A list of current and previously banned or challenged books can be found at:

http://books.google.com/googlebooks/banned/

Notice the overlaying topics throughout these books: Race issues, Religion, Depression, Mental Disorders, Human emotional conflict, Family, Sex and sexual orientation, Love, Addiction....all topics that appear to be strictly off limits to the youngen's of society, but all topics that youth struggle with on a daily basis. If the struggle is not a personal struggle, it is constant curiousity fueled by media, language and society. And if by chance the struggle is personal, a "in your face, and eating fruit loops with you at the breakfast table" perhaps these books give a stepping stone to the young adults who teeterlingly walk the line of child and adult.

My personal opinion on the banned books issue is fairly simple. Let the kids read. What they read may be too much for them, in which case, they won't understand. Think about the first time you read The Giver, or To Kill a Mockingbird. If you were too young, the deeper rooted concepts stay blissfully underground, peeping up only as blades of grass you'll examine later. If the reader understands the topics, then good stuff, because one more person thinking about their books is one more person who is beginning to think for themselves. I'm not saying to throw 4th graders Lord of the Flies, but if a 7th grader finds a copy and sits down to think for awhile, I

think that is a beautiful thing.

The parental concerns about material are valid, as parents want to keep their children as safe and as sheltered as possible. I'm not touching the honest concern that a book may be too much for a child. I would however take it as a learning experience, helping to understand and facilitate the concerns.

As William Feather says, "Books open your mind, broaden your mind, and strengthen you as nothing else can”

My topic for this year..will be the topics, issues and themes that radiate through YA literature. Not too long ago, the last 50 years, literature for young adults has radically changed. The topics discussed now range from sexually explotation to teenage puppy love. These issues are not only the backbone these books, but they are the reason for banning, as well as the reason for enjoyment. So, through the next 12-15 posts I will be digging through various new resources, going over all books new and old to discuss the topics which make them great. YA literature as a whole has expanded from a a whisper in Treasure Island(1883) to a full out scream in Catcher in Rye and Lord of the Flies. More historical information about YA literature can be found here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_adult_literature.

My mission is to find the things about Young Adult literature that make it greatm interesting and thought provoking enough to fill the banned books list. Why are these topics alright from someone who is 20, but not someone who is 17? The most occuring topic in YA Literature is love. Young adults, apparently, just love falling into love, whether it be physical love, or a love for a platonic character, love of violence, love of a drug. Emotions run high throughout the "young adult" genre, and these emotions are honed in on by youth and adult readers. I am going to try to dive into the contreversies, the love and the words of YA readers, writers and critizers, hopefully finding out why exactly these books have such an important role in the literary community.

In order to research this topic freely, I registered to several news RSS feeds, such as, www.cnn.com , as well as the New York Times www.nytimes.com . I also tapped into the Detriot Free Press, http://www.freep.com/ ( I have no idea why I put Grand Rapids Press before..because that's definantly not what I meant.) I chose the NYTimes and CNN as sources for my topic because I trust their intellectual grasp on literature, and things happening in the Young Adult literary community. I chose the Detriot Free Press because this paper is the largest publication close to me. I thought it would be useful to understand the 'local' view of Young Adult literature, and why it holds so much importance in literary circles throughout the world.
For Blog imput, I found a charming Live Journal dedicated soley to YA literature. http://community.livejournal.com/yalitlovers/ I chose this website because the blog seems to be dedicated to the love of young adult literature, it is kept up my intellegent and interesting people that have a love for literature, and especially a love for young adult literature.
I also found a webpage devouted to Young Adult Literature. It's built by Kay Vandergrift, it was built VERY recently, November 14th, 2006, and this site has multiple links to the Young Adult world of understanding:http://www.scils.rutgers.edu/~kvander/YoungAdult/index.html

Also interesting, I found a Top 100 YA List for more books to browse through and enjoy.