10 Things I Like About YA… PART ONE!
It’s no surprise why so many of us love YA (Young Adult) novels.
Some of us are still YA’s ourselves, and there are others that are Adults, or just out of teen years, that LOVE YA too. There are MILLIONS of us. There are thousands of reasons why so many of us love the YA worlds of Fantasy, Romance and Contemporary, and even Dystopian. And why can’t we all love YA? There’s no reason; it’s a free genre…we can all help ourselves to the wonderful storylines and characters within those pages.
So, *drum-roll* here are my reasons why I love YA; part one of my “10 Things I Like About YA” series which will take part over Saturday, Sunday and Monday!
1. It’s More Honest
I’ve read YA and Adult, and YA is by far more honest when it comes to talking about life and growing up, expectations and love. It’s different in the way that there are no barriers and it’s very upfront and like I said; very honest. It’s something that I think makes a story just that extra bit relatable in the way that it let’s us see the real side to things for Young Adult’s lives and ourselves.
2. Relatable is Likeable
I’ve found Adult characters relatable to a point; and that point draws a clear sign that I can’t do any more than slightly relate. With a YA main character, even if our lives aren’t even remotely the same, there’s a sort of “unsaid” understanding between the character and the reader that opens up a story within a story. If I can’t relate, it makes it difficult to believe in what I’m reading, but when I can…it’s magic.
3. It helps us find ourselves
In most YA books, there’s a journey, sometimes out loud or sometimes revealed over time, that the characters find themselves, or see themselves growing to be a different, better person. Closer to a dream, or to reach a goal, or just growing up in general, when a YA character finally finds themselves, we relate in a way that helps us find a part of ourselves. Sometimes, like with books like Second Chance Summer or The Fault in Our Stars.
4. Fantasy becomes a Reality
When we read about a far away land, a mythical journey, a historic or unconventional past or future, it gives our minds this little world to picture; a fantasy world where anything is possible, what we can read about our favourite characters in a way that they couldn’t be in the normal present world. Think Divergent or Vampire Diaries. Those worlds are fictional; Divergent set in Futuristic Chicago, where the world is catorgorized into factions. Then there’s Vampire Diaries, a world in our present, in a town called Mystic Falls; where Vampires exist and people know about it. Where there’s witches, werewolves and doppelgangers…and every time I open The Awakening, or The Struggle, there’s a hint of magic to my mind that only comes with those Fantasy worlds, and it opens up our minds to something exciting and new.
What are your favourite things about YA?
Do you agree with my four picks?
For PART TWO, click here! If you want to take part in this “10 things I like about YA” trilogy post, just link back in the comments so I can visit your blogs, too!
happy reading!
