Tagged: teenagers
Three Great Reasons to Read as a Teenager
I remember when I was a teenager how so many of my friends thought it was strange that I always had a book somewhere close at hand. All of them told me things like “I really never learned how to like reading,” or “Reading is so boring.” I’ll be honest, I never understood why they had such thoughts. To me reading has always been one of the best ways a person can spend their time. So, today I bring you three great reasons why every teenager should read regularly.
#1: Reading is the Perfect Escape
Being a teenager is hard sometimes. Everybody knows that, and sometimes you just need to get away from everyone else in your life and escape into another reality for a few hours. I did this regularly in my younger years and it always helped so much. Escaping into a fantasy world, some epic action, or a wistful romance story can be just the change of pace you need after some of the stress of being a teenager.
#2: Reading Will Improve Your Life
No doubt about it, reading and reading often will improve your life at some point. It’s a proven fact that people who read regularly can grasp new concepts more easily, can explain themselves more clearly, and can communicate with others more effectively. Reading often develops in you an innate skill that can’t really be explained, but it’s there, I promise. I’m positive that some of the opportunities I’ve had in life can be traced back to the fact that I love to read and have done better at certain activities because of it.
#3: Reading is the Easiest Fun You Will Ever Have
Now, more than ever, a young adult or teenager can find thousands of great stories to devour with their minds. Young adult fiction was not nearly as prevalent in my teenage days as it is now. Grabbing a book from the library is quick, easy, and best of all, free. Who can argue with fun that comes at no cost? I certainly can’t.
Books can take you places you’ve never been, put ideas in your mind that you’ve never dreamed of thinking before, and bring about changes in your life both large and small. So, take a moment, grab that book you got for your last birthday or during last Christmas you haven’t opened yet and give it a try. I bet you’ll find you like it more than you might think.
Extras by Scott Westerfeld
(Cover picture courtesy of Fantastic Fiction.)
A few years after rebel Tally Youngblood takes down the Specials regime, a cultural renaissance sweeps the world. “Tech-heads” flaunt their latest gadgets, “kickers” spread gossip and trends, and “surge monkeys” are hooked on extreme plastic surgery. Popularity rules, and everyone craves fame.
Fifteen-year-old Aya Fuse is no exception. But Aya’s face rank is so low, she’s a total nobody. An extra. Her only chance at stardom is to kick a wild and unexpected story.
Then she stumbles upon a big secret. Aya knows she is on the cusp of celebrity. But the information she is about to disclose will change both her fate…and that of a brave new world.
If you’ve read the first three books in the Uglies trilogy (which was turned into a series with the release of this book), you will get so much more enjoyment out of Extras. You’ll be able to see just how different Tally’s world has become and yet how much it is like our own world. In Aya’s world, popularity rules. The more popular you are, the more credits you get and the better your life is. But anyone who is not popular—which is most of the population—is an extra, a nobody. Does this remind anyone of high school?
What really stands out in Extras (for me at least) is the explosion of new technologies since Specials. Since practically no one over 16 is a bubblehead anymore, intelligence has been allowed to flourish and Scott Westerfeld describes the new advances in spectacular detail. With all of that new technology and freedom, “surges”—or surgeries—have also become popular, especially the extreme kind. It is a credit to Scott Westerfeld’s world-building abilities that he includes all kinds of people who change their bodies to create their idea of ‘true beauty.’ I find it fascinating what people choose to look like in Aya’s world since they are allowed to change themselves into whoever they want.
As usual, Scott Westerfled’s characterization is spot-on. Many readers will sympathize with Aya because she is the voice of teenage insecurity. Surrounded by beautiful people and being nothing more than an unimportant, faceless extra has really taken its toll on her. As a result, many teenagers will sympathize with her insecurities and will cheer her on as the plot speeds along.
I give this book 4/5 stars.
Some Thoughts on the YA Genre
Today I’m taking a break from book reviews so I can post this. But don’t worry, the daily reviews will continue running regularly on Friday again.
1) It isn’t only limited to teenagers.
Both tweens and adults read YA fiction as well as teenagers because some of its themes are universal: love, belonging and trust, to name a few. I mean, how many adults do you see reading Twilight, The Hunger Games or Harry Potter? A fair few adults read YA fiction because if it is written well, it can be enjoyed on many different levels.
2) When it’s bad, it’s really bad. Conversely, when it’s good, it’s really good.
YA fiction, to me at least, can be a genre of extremes. It is usually really good or really bad, with very few books falling in shades of grey. Of course, there are exceptions to this rule. When a YA book is bad, it goes the whole nine yards: poor writing, one dimensional characters, a slow plot, you name it. But when a YA book is good it has excellent writing, three dimensional characters and an interesting plot.
3) It has so much romance!
Pretty much every single YA book I’ve read has had romance in it. But then, it sort of makes sense because teenagers deal with romance in their daily lives. Romance isn’t by nature bad (far from it), but it can get tiresome, especially when I read a book that focuses heavily on the romance while neglecting characterization, plot and world-building. Maybe this is just me, though.
4) It can be life-changing.
Books were no doubt my greatest influence. They brought me to new, exciting worlds; helped me escape into the skin of a braver character; taught me things I never would have known otherwise and most of all, gave me a more well-rounded view of life. When I was being bullied for being an above-average student (among other things), I could read Artemis Fowl and feel empowered. When I was fighting with my weight, I would read Uglies and feel good about myself. So many books have changed my life that it would take forever to list them all. Good YA fiction can help teenagers learn more about life, which is why I wish they would cover more of it in school. It would keep more people engaged than reading and over-analyzing Shakespeare or Chaucer.
5) It is one of the fastest-growing genres.
There are more YA books than ever out there! People have finally realized that teens actually, you know, like to read. The market for YA fiction is growing, as demonstrated by big publishers like Harlequin, Simon & Schuster and many, many more running specialized teen lines. This, of course, goes along with the general trend of marketing to tweens and teens specifically. But hey, at least teens are finally having a voice in literature that’s not about to go away any time soon.
These are just five things I’ve noticed about the YA genre in general. What have you noticed about the YA genre? Is its expansion a good thing? What are your favourite YA books?