My Say: When YA Might Not Be OK
By Shannon Stevenson, Children's Bookshelf -- Publishers Weekly, 8/7/2008
This week we inaugurate a new opinion column. If you have commentary to share about the world of children’s books, let us know. Send suggestions or contributions here for consideration.
Last month’s intriguing essay in the New York Times Book Review, about the arbitrary and sometimes baffling distinction between young adult and adult books, got me thinking. What about the lower end of the spectrum? As YA books get more sophisticated in theme and subject matter, what about kids who are good readers and want to “read up,” but when they do, find books that aren’t age-appropriate?
This is an issue I face fairly frequently as a children’s librarian at a suburban public library. I get confident readers, usually ages 11 and 12 (and usually girls), asking me for Gossip Girl, the Uglies books by Scott Westerfeld, or, more recently, Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight books. I have to admit that such requests really put me to the test. Is it right for me to discourage a kid’s reading choice? No. But is it right for me to give a kid a book that I think is probably not appropriate? At the risk of sounding censorship alarms, or being seen as an “uncool” librarian, my answer is again, No. I just don’t feel comfortable giving a sixth-grader one of these books—all popular titles that, in my library, are shelved “over there” in the teen area, through the door and around the corner from the children’s room.
Though it’s sometimes just as difficult to draw clear boundaries between children’s and YA books as it is between YA and adult books, we use some general guidelines, relying on staff expertise. In my library, the children’s room typically contains materials for kids up to eighth grade (though many seventh- and eighth-graders make an early migration to the teen area). And to me, the YA distinction usually means that the protagonists are in high school or sometimes college, and are dealing with complex emotional and societal issues that many older teens face, including navigating the tricky waters of romance, sexuality and body image, experimenting with alcohol or drugs, or suffering in the wake of violence or mental illness. In recent years, the trend in YA fiction has been toward a proliferation of darker, edgier fare, aimed at a more mature audience. As a result, I don’t ever send younger kids to browse “over there” unaccompanied. It feels too much like throwing them into the deep end of the pool. And you can bet that I don’t want to face the wrath of parents who believe that I’ve led their child astray in some way.
When a younger reader asks me for an “older” book, I explain that the title they’re after is shelved in the young adult section and then I conduct a mini interview in a casual tone, asking where they heard about the book and if they know what it’s about. I fill them in as best I can if they want me to, and occasionally some kids change their mind, not feeling ready to take the plunge yet. If they are with an adult, the adult usually takes over at that point, either encouraging or nixing the book choice. But if the readers are on their own, I ask if they think their parents would mind them checking out a YA book. If the kid hesitates at any point along the way, I ask if they might want to try something else and I find a substitution in the children’s room. But if I still get a green light on the requested YA title, I go with it. Sometimes a reader is content to have me bring the book to them in the children’s room. But if they want to follow me, I accompany the reader to the YA section and put the book in their hands.
This is the kind of service we provide for all patrons, but in this particular scenario, I believe it helps prevent, or at least delay, kids from stumbling onto something they may not be ready for. After I’ve filled the reader’s request, however, my job is done—at least for the moment. I don’t discourage any readers from browsing further “over there.” And on their next visit to the library, they may well make a beeline for the YA section and skip the kids’ library altogether. (Of course they can also receive guidance from our terrific YA librarian, too.) But in the long run, I can only hope (naively??) that my strategy accomplishes two things: I gain kids’ trust and they consider their reading choices a bit more closely.
Shannon Stevenson is a children’s librarian at Mt. Lebanon Public Library in suburban Pittsburgh, and was formerly an editor in the children’s department at Publishers Weekly.
