Today I really wanted to discuss a topic with you that has been on my mind for a long time: growing out of the Young Adult genre. I have been an avid reader of YA books since I was around 10 or 11 years old. I would even go as far as to say that I didn’t read anything else until about 3 years ago, and even then 90% of what I read was still YA. But lately there has been a HUGE shift in my reading taste. I rarely pick up a YA novel and when I look at the new releases, almost none of them really spark my interest. After mulling this over for a while I realised this had several different reasons.
EVERYTHING IS THE SAME
The main thing that caused me to take a step back from this genre is the fact that everything feels the same. I reckon it’s because I have read my fair share of YA books, but I just feel like I have seen (read) it all. The tropes that I used to love are becoming cliché. I know exactly where the story is gonna go before I have even made it to the halfway point. And all the characters seem to blend together. Now, I don’t want to generalise because there are definitely amazing and original YA books out there (especially now that diversity is more encouraged than ever before), but they seem to become more and more rare.
IT’S NOT RELATABLE ANYMORE
Secondly, probably the most obvious reason: I am no longer a ‘young adult’. I am twenty-one and therefore no longer part of the target audience aged 12-18. It’s just harder for me to relate to the characters. Decisions that I used to think made total sense, now seem naive. And the issues being discussed, as important as they are, generally don’t hit home for me anymore (once again, I’m not trying to generalise because I am fully aware that important issues are touched upon in yound adult literature. I am soley speaking of the age-specific issues).I want to read about people who are my age and be able to relate to their problems. Because I am not in high school anymore, and as much as I can remember what that was like, I don’t want to go back and read about the same ol’ stuff time and again.
I WANT TO BRANCH OUT
The third and final reason why I think I am growing out of YA, is the fact that I really want to branch out and broaden my horizons (okay, maybe horizons is a bit dramatic, but I do really want to broaden my reading tastes). Like I said at the beginning, I have read so much young adult for so long! I just need something new and fresh, I want to read about people in different paths of life. I want to read adult fiction. I want to read non-fiction about all sorts of subjects. Mainly, I want to gain new knowlegde and insights that I won’t able to get from YA at this very moment.
Before I let you go I really want to say that I am in no way trying to bash the young adult genre or the people who enjoy to read YA. I love YA, it has been a huge part of my life and I am not all saying that I will never pick up a young adult novel again. There are some true gems out there. I just thought this was an interesting topic to explore and would love to hear your thoughts on the matter.
What is your favourite genre to read?
What’s up i am kavin, its my first occasion to commenting anyplace, when i read this piece
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Hi, thanks for commenting. I am glad you likes my post.
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Hi! You can absolutely share my blog with your twitter group, no problem! I’m so glad you enjoyed my post enough to share it 🙂