Friday 16 February 2018

Where are the University Aged Books?

Lately I have been considering the relationship between my age and my love of YA. You can see this in a post I wrote a few months ago about the nature of YA and what I think attracts adults to YA, which you can find here. I have been reading more adult fiction for university in this past year and a half, and with this wider range of books I've started to wonder why no one talks about the in-between stage of teenage life and adult life.



I was discussing this with a friend whilst fretting about the future. Why does nobody talk about what a weird time in our lives this is? When I was a child I would see 20-somethings and think 'that is an adult'. But now that I'm there, I don't feel like an adult. I feel like I've grown into a more well-rounded person, and that I'm beginning to understand myself and the world around me in new and better ways. But I don't understand taxes. I don't have a fully set out career or life plan. I don't know what I'm doing.

Teenage years are incredibly difficult. That is why I think YA is so important - teens need to know that they're not alone in this time of growth and the big changes going on in their lives. But you don't come out the other end of high school being a fully formed adult. Far from it.

I would like to see more books that deal with the flailings of 20-something existence. When I was going through a difficult time as a teenager, I could always find a work of fiction that I could connect to, where a character was going through something I could relate to. I still find that with YA now. Some books hold messages I wouldn't know I needed until much later, and they help shape my perspective and validate my experiences. But now semi-adulthood is part of my experiences, and although not as intense as the teenage years, it is still an experience I'd like to see more of in fiction.

Fangirl is the only book I've read that deals with this phase of life. There has to be more, but I haven't come across them. When I first heard of New Adult I'd hoped this age range of books would cover the apparent gap in literature. But from what I've seen, the age category normally seems reserved for books with a more romantic and sexual focus than what YA would allow. There is nothing wrong with that, but those aren't themes that interest me all too much. Plus I feel like the lack of non-romance/sex focused books leads to the idea that it's necessary to have experienced those things by a certain age, or that it's necessary to want those things at all, which is absolutely not the case. But that's a discussion for another day.

I don't think we necessarily need a new age category in literature to fix the lack of university aged books. Fangirl is categorised as YA, even though the characters are not in high school anymore. I'm sure there are other books as well that document this phase of existence that are considered either YA or Adult. Life doesn't end after high school.

I'd like to see a future where literature doesn't just represent our 20s as just a time for romance, or a stage to gloss over as if nothing much happens. I want to see books that acknowledge this in-between stage and how adulthood doesn't come all at once, but in stages. And I want books to show that life beyond high school can be pretty great too.


Would you like to see more books about life after high school? Do you think there's a space for them in the world of books and publishing? Are there any books you can think of that deal with this strange but wonderful age?

8 comments:

  1. I am 100% with you on this point. I'm not necessarily down with a "new adult" genre...because what does that even mean? I don't think you magically turn adult at age 18. I'm 24 and I definitely feel like an adult, but a young one. I am a young adult.

    Fangirl was terrific, and it's so sad that there's still such a big gap in the genre there. You'd think it would have grown after the success of Fangirl.

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    1. I think a lot of experiences within YA are felt by people over the age of 18, which is what makes it so widely read. Adulthood is a complicated thing and I have no idea what it is or when the starting point is, but I agree that for me it doesn't feel like it's right now! I'm all for New Adult being a genre in terms of marketing a certain type of books (i.e. the ones more 'adult' content than YA) but I feel like it's an extention of the romance genre rather than reflecting an identifiable experience for people in the in-between stage of being a teen and an adult.

      There is definitely a gap in publishing there that Fangirl alone can't fill. No one is writing those kind of books so no one is reading them and the cycle goes on. It might just be down to 18+ being a difficult demographic to market towards.

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  2. I am so with you! I'm 23, and I'd love to see more of people going through the same experiences as me in books. Like you said, I've definitely become an adult in the past few years. I've gotten to know myself, and appreciate myself. But there are so many things I haven't figured out yet. I want to travel, but I need to work too. And while I love my work, is it what I want to do for the rest of my life? Should I go back and study that one field I'm interested and stop working? But then I'd have to give up my salary too. How do you expand your friend-circle as an adult? I honestly have so many questions, and so many things I haven't figured out.

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    1. It's definitely a weird age we're in! There are a lot of big changes at this age that aren't necessarily as dramatic as the teenage years (where everything feels so heightened and important), but they are still significant. It's just that this time there is no fiction to guide us through it or relate to. It's all about finding work and life and travel and study balances, and friendships don't feel as easy in high school where you can maintain those friendships because you see the people every day. As a teen, YA books often had a lot of answers for me. But at this age I have no clue how to be an adult with a stable life like I imagined being 20 would involve (I didn't know a lot of 20-somethings as a kid!). Maybe adulthood is a myth and the ramling nature that is the 20s is something that sticks around forever. Regardless it would be nice to see the experience in books.

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  3. Yes I would love to see more of this as well! And I know that there are a couple books out there that are set in college, but even now as a grad student, I don't feel like I'm an adult? And I think a lot of adult fiction focuses on marriage and cheating and all that drama, and I'm like nope. It's why I tend to stick to adult fantasy, science fiction, or just something else completely, you know?

    Some books I can think of that are set in college are Let's Talk About Love, We Are Okay, American Panda (though the MC is 17), and that's all I can think of just off the top of my head!

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    1. I see that a lot in adult literary fiction too! Surely these marriage and affairs aren't the only things going on in the lives of 'real adults'. I'm the same as you and stick to the non-contemporary adult genres. Somehow I can relate to those characters so much more than the ones in mundane situations where their only problems are family dramas.

      Those are actually all books I want to read so it's good to hear they're set in college! Thanks for reminding me of them - I'll add them to my TBR now :D

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  4. I totally agree with you! YA really helped me as a teenager understand that I wasn’t alone in feeling as I did, and I’d really like the same for my current age group (I’m 24). Fangirl is the only book I can think if too, and that’s maybe why it was so relatable for me (that and the main character being super shy!).
    I just want more books about people who feel out of their depths and like they don’t know what they’re doing with their life! (Well...that’s my experience of being in your early twenties anyway!) :)
    Great post! :)

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    1. It would be so great to have some books for our age group! I guess we don't have much of it because it's a weird demographic to market towards, but if movies can do it I'm sure publishing can too. Fangirl was also super relatable for me, both because of the character's experiences and her shyness, and I read that in my teens.

      My experience of being in the twenties is the same. I'm 20 and I already have no idea what's happening!

      Thanks Laura!

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