Let It Snow

There’s something about the holiday season that makes me want to curl up with a cozy blanket, hot chocolate, and read stories of love.  Let It Snow was the perfect holiday read.

Let It Snow
by John Green, Maureen Johnson, and Lauren Myracle
352 p. Speak. 2008.
Gr 9 Up

Three authors of teen fiction join together to write a collection of linked novellas set in the same town in North Carolina around Christmas Eve.  When a snowstorm hits, a packed train get stuck in the resulting snow, and the teens from the train interact from the teens from the town in hilarious and romantic ways.  In Johnson’s “Jubilee Express,” Jubilee meets Stuarts, who convinces her she deserves better than the boyfriend she left at home.  Green portrays the teen male perspective with humor and wit that reminded me of Paper Townsin “Cheertastic Christmas Miracle,” in which Toby struggles on his quest through the snow with his two buddies to reach the Waffle House in order to meet 14 stranded cheerleaders.  In Myracle’s “Patron Saint of Pigs,” Addie agonizes about her recent breakup.  Everything concludes nicely with all the main characters enjoying coffee at Starbucks.

The Feels

Mild feels. The stories are tender and humorous with believable characters. Johnson’s was probably my favorite of the three, and I did not much care for Myracle’s story at all.  The stories illuminate the magic of the holidays, and the collection is a light, but satisfying read for cold winter nights.

“The John Green Effect” and “GreenLit”

I just finished Andrew Smith’s Winger, which last year had been given the title of GreenLit by New York Times.  “GreenLit” according to New York Times is a thing used to define writers that either write in the style of John Green or writers John Green celebrates (e.g. Rainbow Rowell, A.S. King, e. lockhart).  I’m not going to go into what I think of the whole “GreenLit” definition (some people even call it a “genre”!) too much, but BookRiot pretty much sums up my thoughts on the term.

I know Green really helped bring the realistic genre featuring smart, self-aware teenage narrators with witty dialogue back to life, but he did not invent the genre.  Anyone else remember Blume, Hinton, or even Salinger? (Okay, technically, The Catcher in the Rye (1951) was originally published for adults, but it has since become really popular with youth because of its themes.) …And can we just talk about the reigning queen of contemporary YA? Sarah Dessen, folks. Sarah Dessen.

To me, it is honestly kind of demeaning to the authors’ talents and accomplishments; I’m sure these other authors would appreciate their books being evaluated on their own merits.

I recognize the importance of John Green. In fact, my blog might not have existed without Green, because he really did help usher in the trend in the revival of contemporary, realistic fiction.

https://twitter.com/johngreen/status/467020907169738752

But even Green think it’s ridiculous to claim he is the sole reason for the contemporary YA revival.

I want to make it clear that this blog is not about GreenLit; it’s about emotionally intense contemporary YA of which John Green’s books belong.  As a librarian, I love read-alikes, which are so important in reader’s advisory, and therefore can appreciate the whole, “Oh, you liked John Green? You may like one of these…” But what I can’t get behind is the idea that authors’ books be generalized based on the narrative style of Green or that Green should somehow be placed on a pedestal for all other YA contemporary realism to be compared against. There is so much range and nuance in contemporary realism, and grouping them all into GreenLit (or not GreenLit) really ignores the innovation and brilliance of the other authors.

Eleanor & Park

Eleanor & Park
by Rainbow Rowell
328 p. St. Martin’s Press. April 12, 2012
Gr 9 Up

Two awkward teenagers labeled as outsiders, Eleanor and Park, meet on the school bus where they quickly bond over their love of comics and 1980s alternative music.  Told through the alternating perspectives of Eleanor and Park, readers glimpse the contrast between Eleanor’s awful home life of abuse-plagued poverty and Park’s dysfunctional but loving family.  Funny, smart, and heart-wrenching, the story of two quirky teens falling in love for the first time is captivating for teen and adult readers.

The Feels

Okay, I didn’t really have too many feels about this book.  It’s good, don’t get me wrong, but I didn’t feel sucker punched with emotion like some other books I’ve read.  I felt for Eleanor and her terrible, terrible home life, and I enjoyed watching them fall in love and grow and change because of the other person.  The ending tore my heart apart, and I became increasingly frustrated with Eleanor, but I’m not going to spoil the ending by going into any more detail.

A little clarification

Technically, Eleanor & Park isn’t contemporary fiction, because it takes place in the 1980s.  However, it is realistic fiction with a smart and emotional story line.   Eleanor & Park was published on the heels of Green’s The Fault in Our Stars with a glowing review from Green himself: “Eleanor & Park reminded me not just what it’s like to be young and in love with a girl, but also what it’s like to be young and in love with a book.”  Since, St. Martin’s has gone back 28 times for a total of nearly 500,000 copies of the book.  Just as Harry Potter opened the door for fantasy readers, Twilight for vampire fiction, and The Hunger Games for dystopia fiction, I think it is safe to say that Rowell and Green have helped to open the door for contemporary, realistic stories again.

Also,

I may have met Rainbow this year as well.  I fangirled so hard, and even Benedict Cumberbatch made it into our photo.  If you haven’t read her books, I highly recommend all of them.  Fangirl‘s my favorite, in case you were dying to know.

John Green: Contemporary Gateway

If you haven’t heard of him yet, then you’re probably living under a rock. John Green is an Indiana resident, Young Adult author, and is one half of the Vlogbrothers, one of the most popular online video projects in the world. His #1 New York Times bestseller that Time Magazine called “damn near genius,” The Fault in Our Stars will break your heart into a million little pieces. It was adapted into a movie starring Divergent‘s Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort. Also, I might have attended “The Night Before Our Stars,” and I might have shared tissues with the stranger sitting next to me.

I’m not going to talk about all of his books (But they’re all really good. You should go read them. Seriously.) just The Fault in Our Stars because its success (it sold nearly 2.5 million copies in just 19 months after its release), I think, has really served as a gateway for contemporary young adult fiction.

The Fault in Our Stars
by John Green
313 p. Dutton. January 10, 2012
Gr 9 Up

Hazel Grace is a 16-year-old terminal cancer patient.  With her life-sustaining oxygen tank, she attends a weekly Cancer Kid Support Group where she meets Augustus “Gus” Waters, a confident, sarcastic, handsome boy and a cancer patient in remission.  Through an exchange of books, philosophies, and metaphors, Hazel and Augustus try to make sense of what it means to be in love and imminently mortal.  Green’s style shines through with witty characters and dialogue filled with humor and melancholy. The book is an achingly beautiful story about life, love, and loss.

The Feels

No. It is not okay. I am not okay. Stop saying it’s okay.

This story makes my heart hurt so much, and months after reading the book and seeing the film, I still feel emotionally raw.  Hazel and August certainly left their scar on me.

After TFiOS

I think it is safe to say that Hazel Grace and Augustus left their scar on the YA literature scene as well.  Readers are now looking for titles that are permeated with aphorisms and unrequited young love.  Molly Wetta lists various configurations to look for in YA novels to satisfy Green fans:

• Pop Culture + Irony + Doomed Love (e.g. Schneider’s The Beginning of Everything)
• Highly Quotable + Heartache + Happy Ending (e.g. Saenz’s Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe)
• (Endearingly) Raunchy Moments + Boarding School + Gut-wrenching Plot Twist (e.g. Smith’s Winger)
• Not Another Cancer Book (e.g. Murphy’s Side Effects May Vary)
• Missing Persons + Profound Thoughts (e.g. Whaley’s Where Things Come Back)
• Emotionally Intense + Bittersweet (e.g. Ockler’s The Book of Broken Hearts)
• Unexpected + Under the Radar (e.g. Galloway’s The 39 Deaths of Adam Strand)
• New Releases + Old Favorites (e.g. McGovern’s Say What You Will)

Also…

I met John Green, and he was just as adorably nerdy and nice as I always imagined.

Some Definitions

Feels

shorthand for the word “feelings,” used to describe an intense emotional response.

I often think we use the term “feels” when we’re overcome with such an intense wave of emotions that we don’t know how to describe or explain what it is exactly we are feeling. Frequently, my friends and I use the term when discussing books, especially contemporary, realistic YA fiction. It’s still the term we use the most when talking about The Fault in Our Stars, and perhaps it is because we are too lazy to say, “I feel pain. I feel awe. I feel sad. And somehow, I also feel happy,” but I also think it’s because we don’t understand what we’re feeling. Sometimes, I think we feel a bit like Charlie, still trying to figure out how we are feeling so many things at the same time, and instead of trying to work it out we just say, “Oh, the feels,” or “I can’t handle the feels” or “So many feels,” because it is easier and people still understand what we are trying to say: “I feel intense emotions that I cannot adequately describe.”

I’m not going to define literary, because I think it is a little more obvious.  Although, I should probably note that I’m not talking about high quality literature or at least not by most people definitions. Rather this blog is devoted to my exploration of emotionally-intense young adult literature. I hope you like crying gifs, because I anticipate a lot of crying and a lot of feels. I just hope my heart can take it.

A Personal Inquiry

As part of my Master of Library Science specialization in Children’s and Young Adult Services, I am taking a Seminar on Youth Literature where we are examining current trends in children’s literature and publishing as they relate to libraries and their patrons.  For the class, we were each asked to identify an area of inquiry that was personally relevant and stimulated our curiosity.

I will be investigating contemporary and realistic young adult fiction.  In preparation for this project, I had been exploring “new” trends in YA literature and came across an article by Sue Corbett in Publishers Weekly, “New Trends in YA: The Agents’ Perspective.” In the article, Corbett discusses different trends that are rising and falling in young adult literature; one of those discussed is contemporary fiction, specifically, emotionally-intense young adult literature. This topic really resonated with me, because, I, like many young adults (and even adults) fell in love with the heart-wrenching love stories of Hazel and Augustus in John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars and Eleanor and Park in Rainbow Rowell’s Eleanor and Park.

In the article, Michael Bourret comments: “We flooded the market with as much paranormal as it could stand…what everyone wants to be working on right now is contemporary realistic.”  In truth, contemporary fiction has been around for a while now, but its popularity has seen an upswing thanks in part to Green and Rowell. Indeed, there are lists all over the internet dedicated to what to read after John Green.

I have some initial critical questions that I will be investigating; I certainly anticipate this list growing as my inquiry evolves:

• What makes contemporary YA fiction?
• Notable authors in the genre?
• Are the books more focused on the character development rather than plot?
• Are there antagonists?
• Are there common elements shared (e.g. young love, pop culture, etc.)?

I will be using this blog to keep track of what I discover in my readings and in my research. I hope to gain some sort of understanding about what it is that makes these books so engaging to youth.  I welcome any comments and suggestions for future readings.