Pratiti Roy

Jessica O’Hara

English 137H

12/07/2014

YA Lit Through the Ages

John Green made TIME’s 100 Most Influential People in 2014. In 2011, J.K. Rowling

was the youngest self-made billionaire (Prince). Veronica Roth has nearly 500,000 Twitter

followers. And according to Publisher’s Marketplace, the genre these three authors write in,

young adult literature, is the fastest-growing sector of publishing (Weinman). Everywhere we

look, there are references to young adult literature, whether it’s on the New York Times

Bestseller List or the marquee of your local movie theater. However, it has not always been this

way. The decades before did not possess the robust young adult genre we find today. Instead,

they lacked in both quality and quantity, resulting in a generation of teenagers with little interest

in reading. But at the turn of the millennium, that changed with a rapid growth and expansion of

young adult literature, spurring astounding growth in teenage readership. This expansion came

about through educators’ and authors’ effort to make reading more engaging. In addition, the

young adult publishing industry has been a very lucrative one, which draws many to producing

work for teenagers. The result has become teenagers who read more because they are now being

offered more and better literature.

1

YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE: ITS FALL AND RISE

Teenagers weren’t reading in the 80s and 90s because of a lack of pertinent reading

material. In 2004, the National Endowment for the Arts published a study entitled “Reading at

Risk: A Survey of Literary Reading in America,” in which it was found that from 1982 to 2002,

the number of teenage readers dropped by 20%, or, in more concrete terms, about 20 million

young adults. Similarly, from 1995 to 1997, the number of YA titles published per year went

down from 5,000 to 3,000 (Withers). But it wasn’t just the volume of books published that was

the problem; the other issue was the paucity of quality. While the 70s produced books by classic

YA authors like Judy Blume and Robert Cormier, the 80s brought in the “single problem novel,”

books that dealt with only dealt social problems like divorce or drug abuse (Strickland).

Common books aimed at teens during the period include the high school/college melodrama

Sweet Valley High and R.L. Stine’s horror novels (Strickland), books that did not offer much in

the way of thought or insight. Many people who are now adults lament the limited scope of

books available to them as teenagers; Shannon Peterson, president of the Young Adult Library

Services Association, says, “When I was a teen in the ’90s, there were probably three shelves of

teen books I wanted to read” (Strickland), a sentiment widely shared among many who grew up

during the same time that she did. Overall, the 1980s and 1990s appears to have been a sort of

“dark ages” for teenage literature, with poor availability and little depth.

By the time America got to the early 2000s, it was ready for a young adult renaissance—

which is what it got. You see, in 2009, the National Endowment for the Arts published a new

study called “Reading on the Rise,” in which it found that teenage readership actually went up by

21% during the period from 2002 to 2008 (Withers). Additionally, according to the Pew

2

Research Center, in 2013, 16-29 year olds were the most frequent of library patrons (Zickhur).

Just as the reading decline in the 80s and 90s reflected the malnourished state of young literature

during that era, the sharp increase in readership during the 2000s mirrored the blossoming of the

genre that occurred then. In 2009 alone, over 30,000 young adult titles were published (Withers).

All of a sudden, the young adult genre (not to mention young adult reading habits) went through

an enormous growth.

INCREASED QUALITY/QUANTITY LEADS TO INCREASED CONSUMPTION

Young adult literature has since moved away from “single problem novels” and everyday

teenage difficulties to address a broader scope of subjects. There are dystopias like The Hunger

Games, Divergent, The Giver, and Maze Runner. Then there are the fantasy series like Harry

Potter, Percy Jackson, and Twilight. Recently, popular books have been coming out that discuss

the everyday problems of the 21st-century teenager with philosophical turns. Books like The

Fault in Our Stars address issues like mortality and love. Overall, the variety of books teenagers

can choose from now is much larger now than it was the preceding decades.

And teenagers are really enjoying them, as illustrated by the aforementioned statistics.

But it’s not just teenagers—it’s adults, too. Fifty-five percent of people who buy YA lit are

above 18 years of age. Furthermore, they’re not just buying it for teenagers; seventy-eight

percent of them say that they’re purchasing these novels for their own reading (Bowker). While

many are critical of adults reading young adult literature, I feel as though the fact that adults read

it is a testament to its merits. Novelists like John Green are constantly lauded for the depth of

thought in their books. John Green’s most recent best-seller, The Fault in Our Stars, is a book

about kids with cancer and includes lines like:

3

“Some people don’t understand the promises they’re making when they make them.

“Right, of course. But you keep the promise anyway. That’s what love is. Love is

keeping the promise anyway” (Reilly).

But it’s not just John Green whose work is considered to be high-quality. People also praise J.K.

Rowling for the complexity of her prose and David Levithan for his poignant plots. Most of all,

teenagers and adults alike enjoy these authors’ work because they can relate to it. You would

never have caught an adult reading Sweet Valley High, but plenty of adults read books like The

Hunger Games or Harry Potter. After all, most adults were teenagers at some point in their lives.

These contemporary young adult books portray teenagers grappling with the same thing all

teenagers do: school, love, death, racism, sexism, etc. In fact, a handful of those themes are

relevant to our lives even as adults. Even though the reader may not be a wizard or a cancer

patient or even a teenager, there is still something that they can relate to here.

And so overall, modern teens are flooded with books that they would enjoy reading. But

the thing is, the transition from the early 90s to the late 90s in terms of complexity and subject

matter has happened fairly quickly (at least, in terms of publishing trends). What caused a

sudden increase in quality and quantity in the first place?

MAKING YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE ENJOYABLE AND RELATABLE

After the 2004 publication of “Reading at Risk,” the National Endowment for the Arts

decided to form a campaign in order to get teenagers to read, called “The Big Read.” According

to their website, “The Big Read is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts designed to

restore reading to the center of American culture… The Big Read aims to address this crisis [i.e.,

4

the decline of teenage reading] squarely and effectively” (“About the Big Read”). The program

encourages book discussions and also attempts to relate the book to different art forms, like films

or theatrical productions (if either of those are available). All in all, the program’s goal is to

integrate literature into teenagers’ everyday lives. It tries to make literature relatable to teenagers

and the problems they face by starting a dialogue. They launched a pilot in 2006, and since then,

it has expanded greatly. In the year 2008-2009, there were almost 12,000 Big Read events held

around the country, with more than 800,000 people in attendance (“The Big Read by the (Big)

Numbers”). The proliferation of small events, usually centered in high school and middle school

classrooms, planned with the idea to make literature something fun and interesting for teenagers

encouraged them to read nation-wide.

But it’s not just teachers who are trying to offer young adult books to kids; it’s authors,

too. Interestingly enough, the 1980s and 1990s (addressed earlier) helped to drive the production

of YA literature that kids wanted to read in the 2000s. As the teenagers of the 80s grew up, they

felt compelled to supply contemporary teenagers with the books they were not able to find at that

age. One example is Meg Cabot, who has written over 45 young adult books. She says that she

started writing because she wanted to give teenagers the books that she wished she could have

read in her high school years. She had a hard time finding relatable books, and the books that

were available frustrated her, which inspired her to write young adult novels (“Meg Cabot”). In a

similar vein, David Levithan, the popular author of the young adult book Nick and Norah’s

Infinite Playlist, took into account teenager’s tastes when founding Scholastic’s teen imprint

PUSH (Strickland). So, not only did young adult literature go through its “dark ages” during the

80s and 90s, it affected teenagers of the time enough that it spurred them to produce the young

adult literature that they were not able to find.

5

HARRY POTTER AND THE POWER OF MONEY

A commonly attributed catalyst for this rapid growth seems to have been J.K. Rowling’s

Harry Potter series, which has gained worldwide popularity. The last book, Harry Potter and

the Deathly Hallows, sold 11 million copies on its release date (Kennedy). The arrival of a new

Harry Potter book meant lines of teenagers dressed in Hogwarts robes and lightning-shaped scars

camping out in front of bookstores. However, it wasn’t just a passing trend; studies have shown

that it had an impact on reading habits among children and adolescents. According to a study

conducted by Scholastic and Yankleovich in 2006, 51% of 5-17 year olds said that they did not

read for pleasure before they read the Harry Potter books. The same study reported that 89% of

parents surveyed said that reading the Harry Potter books “helped their child enjoy reading

more” (“New Study”). J.K. Rowling not only created a massive fan base, she also affected

adolescent reading habits.

At any rate the Harry Potter books certainly caused much hype, as well as a definite

change in teenage readership; however, to attribute the rise of teen reading and YA publishing

completely to one book series would be to make an overgeneralization. But, the most influential

aspect of J.K. Rowling’s work is perhaps the sheer amount of money she made. According to a

2014 report, the Harry Potter franchise has netted $15 billion (Gadd). And that’s the total

without merchandise like DVDs or action figures. With all novelty items included, as of 2014,

the total comes out to just shy of $25 billion (“Total Harry Potter”). With numbers like that, it’s

no wonder people want to try a hand as something as lucrative as young adult literature.

In fact, publishers have since capitalized on the trend started by Harry Potter. Norman

Lebrecht, in an article for the Wall Street Journal, recalls that in 1997, a literary agent he spoke

6

to said that children’s books did not sell. Apparently, “kids had ceased reading, full stop”

(Lebrecht). That was also the year when the first Harry Potter book came out. Rowling’s

publisher originally came out with a mere 500 copies of the book. It seems as though adolescent

readership had dropped by so much that even the publishing industry had given up on publishing

books for them. But, somehow, this book changed that. During the time of its reprint, the book

had caught the attention of an American publisher called Scholastic, which offered a $105,000

advance—an unheard of sum for a children’s book (Lebrecht). And, of course, the rest is history.

Now, young adult literature has become a safe bet in the publishing industry where before, it

used to be avoided (Burnett).

Additionally, movie franchises that are based off of young adult novels (which have

become rather popular as of late) have sparked major interest in books, leading to greater

consumption. A great example of this is The Hunger Games, both a popular YA book and a

blockbuster hit of 2012. It made a lot of money, grossing $152.2 million just on its opening

weekend. At the same time as the movie was released in theaters, Scholastic noticed a sharp

increase of sales of the book (Lewis). And so, even though publishers may not directly benefit

from movie sales, they can still help it out.

THE IMPACT (OR, “WHY SHOULD WE CARE?”)

Overall, there was a definite shift in reading habits among teenagers between the 80s/90s

and the 2000s, which seems to have stemmed from an increase in volume and quality of the

young adult literature offered. This, in turn, was probably spurred by the attempts of educators

and authors to get teenagers to read more and provide better books. In addition, the money that

can be gained from children’s literature has also led to an economic driving point for production.

7

However, the most important aspect of the rise of young adult literature is the increase in

reading amongst teenagers. Good reading habits have a lasting effect upon teenagers, especially

if they can take what they read and think critically about it. Today’s world is one in which

technology has forced us to process large quantities of data (often written work) in as little time

possible. It may be sections of large articles or even just hundreds of Facebook messages and

tweets. And when we have less face-to-face communication time, it becomes essential to daily

living to be able to communicate effectively through a purely written medium, like texting or e-

mail. Whatever it may be, our world is evolving into one where reading is becoming more and

more crucial. You see, the thing is, reading isn’t like quantum physics—whatever field you may

decide to go into, there will be some form of reading involved. However, perhaps the most

important thing is that teenagers really are forming good reading habits. And whether it’s

Stephenie Meyer, William Faulkner, or John Green, that’s good news all around.

Works Cited:

"About The Big Read." The Big Read. National Endowment for the Arts. Web. 3 Dec. 2014.

Bowker. "Young Adult Books Attract Growing Numbers of Adult Fans." Bowker 13 Sept. 2012.

Web. 4 Dec. 2014.

Burnett, Matia. "Industry Insiders Talk Young Adult Blockbusters." Publisher's Weekly (2012).

Web. 4 Dec. 2014.

Gadd, Sophie. "How much is Harry Potter’s JK Rowling worth, per word?" The Mirror July

2014. Web. 6 Dec. 2014.

8

Kennedy, Tom. "Pottermore: JK Rowling facts and figures." The Telegraph 23 June

2011 [London] . Web. 2 Dec. 2014.

Lebrecht, Norman. "How Harry Saved Reading." The Wall Street Journal 9 July 2011. Web. 2

Dec. 2014.

Lewis, Andy. "'Hunger Games' Movie Fuels Sharp Rise in Book Sales." The Hollywood

Reporter 28 Mar. 2012. Web. 4 Dec. 2014.

"Meg Cabot's teen escapism and empowered heroines." CNN 12 May 2011. Web. 4 Dec. 2014.

"New Study Finds That the Harry Potter Series has a Positive Impact on Kids' Reading and Their

School Work." About Scholastic (2006). Web. 6 Dec. 2014.

Prince, Rosa. "J.K. Rowling's Fortune Under Vanishing Spell." The Telegraph [London] Mar

2012. Web. 3 Dec. 2014.

Reilly, Kaitlyn. "11 of The Most Profound Quotes From 'The Fault In Our Stars' Guaranteed To

Make You Think." Bustle 4 June 2014. Web. 6 Dec. 2014.

Strickland, Ashley. "A brief history of young adult literature." CNN 17 Oct. 2013. Web. 21 Nov.

2014.

"The Big Read by the (Big) Numbers." The Big Read Blog (NEA) 14 Oct. 2009 [Washington,

DC] . Web. 4 Dec. 2014.

"Total Harry Potter Franchise Revenue." Statistic Brain. Statistic Brain, 1 Jan. 2014. Web. 4

9

Dec. 2014.

Weinman, Sarah. "Steady Trade Results in June and July." Publisher's Lunch Oct. 2014. Web. 6

Dec. 2014.

Zickhur, Kathryn, Lee Rainie, and Kristen Purcell. "Younger Americans’ Library Habits and

Expectations." Pew Internet & American Life Project 25 June 2013. Web. 3 Dec. 2014.

10