by guest blogger, Annika Holland

In the last fifteen years there has been an explosion of literature aimed at the teen demographic.  The wealth of new YA lit has spawned the creation of sub-genre names to better identify the content of a teen novel.  Learning the new genre names is something parents need to do if they want to have an understanding of what their teens want to read.  It is hard to have a book discussion with your teen if you don’t know your steampunk from your dystopian.  To that end, here is a brief guide on some of the new sub-genre terms that have cropped up recently.

Urban Fantasy: This sub-genre includes a mix of human and supernatural beings working together to defeat another evil being(s) in a big city setting.  More often than not, the main character appears to be a regular teen and then discovers that she--or he--is part (insert supernatural being of your choice here).  With this newfound knowledge she meets up with a group of people just like her and learns about a new world that either regular humans can’t see or is are too busy to notice.  There is typically a romantic connection or love triangle that comes into play here as well.

Paranormal Romance:  Usually, the main character is a human who falls in love with a supernatural being.  That being may have been involuntarily “changed” or born that way.  There is a dark threat looming over the human or the supernatural subset causing them to bond and join forces to save someone or something.   The success of the Twilight series has spawned many copycats in this genre – some good, some ridiculous.

Dystopian Society:  An apocalyptic or cataclysmic event that has changed the status quo on earth for the worse is a hallmark feature of this sub-genre. The event may be known to the reader from the beginning or it may be part of the mystery that is gradually unraveled through the story-telling.   Usually the hero needs to prevent or escape the destruction that ensues.  Sometimes a rogue government or scientific institution needs to be toppled as well.  There is a tendency toward more violence in this sub-genre.

Problem Novel:  A realistic portrayal of a teen’s first foray into a social or personal problem.  Usually told from the first person perspective, this type of novel usually runs the gamut from first love, divorce, alcohol/drug-use, date-rape, sexuality, dissolving friendships and everything in-between.  There may or may not be a “satisfying” resolution at the end.   

Sick-Lit:  This is a sub-genre of realistic fiction that is similar to the problem novel .  This type of fiction focuses on realistic portrayals of teens suffering from a broad range of illnesses both physical and emotional.  It might be a teen’s journey dealing with ADD or dyslexia.  Some of these stories can be inspirational and cathartic.  On the other hand, this genre also incorporates such mental/emotional illnesses as anorexia/bulimia, cutting and suicide.  Some of the descriptions are so realistic that they could be considered “how-to” manuals on anorexia or cutting.  Some may argue that they even glorify some of these destructive behaviors. 

Sci-fi:  This is not a new genre in literature, but teen sci-fi is typically paired with another genre or sub-genre, such as romance or dystopian.  The hero usually discovers supernatural abilities after turning a certain age.  These abilities may have come from an alien planet, meteor that hit earth, or developed by scientists on earth.  Either way, our hero generally must battle alien forces or corrupt governments to save Earth, himself or his friends/family.

Steampunk:  Part of the sci-fi category, steampunk literature incorporates machinery powered by (take a wild guess) steam in its plotline.  The setting is usually the 19th century or the future, and it may include revisionist history with alternative machines.  Characters in this sub-genre typically wear Victorian clothing and leather. The new Sherlock Holmes movies, featuring Robert Downey, Jr., are a good visual example of what the steampunk genre looks like.

The more I investigated the new sub-genres in teen lit, the more I realized that most teen books are a hybrid of one or more of these titles.  It isn’t unrealistic to see an urban-dystopian-supernatural-romance.  It is, however, unrealistic to expect that book to be good.  In reading some of this literature, one of the discoveries I have made is that the longer the sub-genre title gets, the worse the story becomes.  However, there are some books that stick to one or two of these categories that I have found to be excellent reads.  Check out some of our reviews on What’s In It? to help you discern the ones with higher quality writing.   

One of my fundamental assumptions when I began this venture was that the YA genre was filled with trash and little but trash.  Because this concerned me deeply, my goal in creating What's In It? was to give parents an inside look at what their teens were actually reading (or wanted to read), so that they weren't forced to throw up their hands and simply hope for the best.  I knew that values and religious sensibilities would differ among my visitors, so I chose to make the reviews as objective as I could, except for the "comments" section.  Still, I figured that such differences wouldn't matter much in the end.  When parents began to see what was filling their kids' heads during their leisure reading hours,  they would see what I saw--that the industry is marketing nothing but destructive trash.  At least, I figured, I could help them discard the worst of it.

Then I started reading.   

So far, I and my companion reviewers have read a lot of YA novels.  Not a lot compared to all that's available, but still, we've done a hefty sampling.  I think that by this point we've read enough to present a clear, birds'-eye view to parents of the YA genre as it actually is, so that we can put assumptions aside.  The fact is, I'm afraid that there is an awful lot of what I would deem "trash" out there.  Some of the books we have read have been shocking eye-openers.  They are poorly written, filled with gratuitous teen drinking and sex, infused with occult elements and/or violence, peppered with vulgar language, or are even occasionally devoid of anything edifying whatsoever.  I and another reviewer have even encountered a few YA novels that were so trashy, we couldn't get past the first couple of chapters.  We didn't want to fill our own minds with its smutty content.  The fact that publishers feel this is appropriate material for teens infuriates me!

And yet...although my snap judgment about the YA genre was vindicated by some truly awful or disturbing novels (Gossip Girl being a prime example), many others have reminded me that there are always gems where there is straw.  The YA genre also hides within it some beautifully written novels, books I want my own girls to read--some of them maybe not in their younger teen years due to some mature content, but eventually.  Between Shades of Gray and Every Soul a Star come to mind most readily as excellent examples of YA gems, but there are more.  And other books are probably not destined to become juvenile classics but are still delightful, chocolate-flavored fun, such as The Luxe and The Grimm Legacy.  

Does that mean that every parent will approve of the books we'd hold out as gems?  Not at all.  All parents, particularly those who homeschool and who must choose books for academic purposes, look for different things in a "good book."  Some of us look for literary quality and accept edgy content with ease.  Some of us may not want our teens to encounter even mild swearing, and some may be uncomfortable with the mildest of romances or even some other issue I have not covered in these reviews.  

The only reason for disapproval that really bothers me, now that I have read a lot of novels in this genre, is literary quality.  It is easy for parents to compare YA offerings with major adult classics, such as masterpieces by Austen or Dickens, and determine that YA is not worth their teens' time, because YA novels just aren't of the same caliber.  This is a judgment I feel is unjust considering that the comparison is not apples-to-apples.  YA novels should be compared against other novels in the same genre, because of differences in style, audience, and age-appropriate complexity.  When given a deeper look, it is difficult to cast some of these books away as worthless reading.  Speak, for example, is powerful, poetic, and profound.  No, it is not a Bronte novel--but then it isn't meant to be, either.

It is also important to recognize that even the most well-written YA books contain content that is likely to be objectionable to some parents, because like it or not, our children are growing up and the books they read are growing up with them.  Because teens mature at different rates and in different circumstances, parents will not always agree on what is age-appropriate content.  All of us need to realize, however, that literature just isn't going to be as innocent and clean as we came to expect during their Ramona Quimby years.  Like our teen children, plots are edging--indeed, must edge--into mature situations and sometimes danger.  Characters swear as people often do in real life, and they don't always act according to the moral and religious teachings they followed unquestioningly as children.  These changes are understandably disquieting to parents, including myself.  I liked it better the other way.

It is this difference in actual content--not merely themes and topics--that I think is the primary reason many of us are wary about exposing our teens to YA.  YA fiction, we realize, is no longer safe.  We don't know what kinds of ideas our teens will pick up that will undo our years of careful parenting.  I'm sure that many parents can relate to my desire to keep my children safe in mind, body, and spirit until they walk out of my hands with their entrance to adulthood.  I want to know I've done everything possible in my duty before God.  But I'm coming to accept during this trek through the YA genre, as well as by watching my two teen daughters experience new things over which I have no control, that because adolescence isn't going to be safe like childhood was, its modes of artistic expression are going adjust.  


For me, this signals a need to adapt and relax a little.  It does not mean discarding my principles of parenting and my protective instincts.  It means to walk with my children as they explore new issues and situations, to talk and struggle with them, and to remember that literature (indeed all art), when chosen carefully, is a blessedly safe way for them to do that.