Of Ballads and Blogs
Why I'm no longer afraid of Young Adult fiction I used to be afraid of Young Adult fiction. It's a strange confession, I realize, but it's true. YA fiction has quickly exploded across the literary scene like some kind of supernova made of easy words and entertainment. To me, this was horrifying. I saw YA as some kind of "low" form of literature - which is to say, not literature at all. It focused on entertainment more than message; meat more than nutrition; mind candy - all sugar no substance. Then the self-pub revolution inflated my fear swelled into phobia. I had a vision of a dystopian future where people only read "trashy" paperbacks and forever left behind the enlightening and challenging texts of the past. I saw "Idiocracy" for literature. However, upon further meditation, I'm no longer afraid. As usual, this irrational fear based on category - catergoryism, if you will - faded with education. I've learned a lot here at Univer...