My Goodreads bio:
I tend to gravitate toward (almost all genres of) YA, urban fantasy, and romance, but those are not my only reading interests. There are some books on my favorites shelf that I loved when I first read them, but I'm not sure how I feel about them now. I figured I'd keep them there for the time being.
As a reader, I'm analytical and critical, and I don't have many "books that define me." It is hard for me to abandon my nitpicking habits and become immersed in a story - "meh" books come more often than books that really and truly please me. I am honest about my opinions, though I try to lessen the sting by emphasizing what others may like about the book and my personal prejudice with regard to the subject matter (e.g. science in science fiction). It is never in my intention to sound rude, condescending, arrogant, or mean; please ask me to clarify if you think badly of my tone. I love discussing books (sometimes more than reading them!) and look forward to our next chat :).
Q: What's up with the YA lit blog?
YA lit is the majority of what I read. Why not post my opinions? And I'm glad I did start my blog; I'm glad for the community.
If you have issues with YA specifically, read this blog post. Or read the quotes below:
"The man-in-the-street puts it in simple terms: children's literature cannot amount to much because 'it's kid stuff.' The assumption here is that by nature the child is 'inferior' to or less than the adult. His literature must be correspondingly inferior or less. Give the kid his comic, while I read grown-up books. But does not this amiable condescension shelter a certain insecurity? As racism is the opium of the inferior mind, as sexual chauvinism is the opium of the defective male, so child-patronage may be the opium of the immature adult." (Fadiman 7)
"But we must not be too quick to pass from the dimensions of length and breadth to that of depth, and say that children's books can never be as 'deep.' The child's world is smaller than the grownup's; but are we so sure that it is shallower? Measured by whose plumbline? Is it not safer to say that, until the child begins to merge into the adolescent, his mental world, though of course in many respects akin to that of his elders, in many others obeys its own private laws of motion? And if this is so, it might be juster to use one plumbline to measure the depth of his literature, and a somewhat different one for that of his elders." (Fadiman 13)
"A children's story which is enjoyed only by children is a bad children's story. The good ones last." (Lewis 33)
"Critics who treat adult as a term of approval, instead of as a merely descriptive term, cannot be adult themselves... When I became a man I put away childish things, including the fear of childishness and the desire to be very grown up." (Lewis 34)
References:
Fadiman, Clifton. "The Case for a Children's Literature." Signposts to Criticism of Children's Literature, compiled by Robert Bator. Chicago: American Library Association, 1983: 7-18.
Lewis, C.S. "On Three Ways of Writing for Children." On Stories: And Other Essays in Literature. New York: Harcourt Inc., 1982: 31-43.
What I look for in books:
More about me:
I am an INFP (or INFJ) in Myers-Briggs.
I have eight scrapbooks/photo albums. (I used to scrapbook more but became lazy). I still have 800+ photos from my graduation and senior week that need sorting and a home to call their own.
I used to play basketball. It's nearly impossible for me to watch a game without thinking of some of the lessons I'd learned, and thus without commenting. (But I don't make an effort to follow sports).
TALK TO ME!
To contact me, shoot me an email at christinareadsya (AT) gmail (DOT) com. You see the buttons at the top? You'll find me at all those social media sites--and don't be a stranger! I love meeting new people especially when it means I can talk about books with them :D.
Have a wonderful day & thanks for visiting my blog.
