reviewing books by teenagers
Apr. 29th, 2008 10:32 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
deborahSometimes I really hate reviewing books by teenagers, and it seems to be happening more and more often these days.
I see a lot of reviewers contextualizing these books as Books by Kids when they review them, either pro or con. Either "a powerful and surprisingly sophisticated work from such a young author" or "could the publishers stop embarrassing us with these juvenile efforts". I don't do that. To me, reviewing the text on anything other than its own merits does a disservice to the readers of my review. My reviews aren't human interest pieces about young authors, they are purchasing advisories for librarians, teachers, and others. Ultimately, the author's age has little to do with the appropriateness of the text-in-hand for a given collection.
Moreover, two different methods of reviewing books by teenagers both really get stuck in my craw. The first is excessive praise. Yes, Eragon was an impressive feat for a teenager. But outside of the human interest pieces, can we move past that? Can we judge the book on its own merits? Can we talk about its writing quality, its use of tropes, its popularity, its characterizations?
Worse is those who get offended at the very notion of published books by teenagers. To those I can only say Exhibit A.: S. E. Hinton Tell me again that a teenager can never write an abiding classic, a fully-realized world with rich characters, gorgeous language, themes that pass the test of time.
So yes, I try my hardest to review these books entirely on their own merits. But it's hard, yo. All of these books are extremely impressive feats from young writers. They wouldn't be getting through the editorial process otherwise, no matter how much the publishing house hopes to use the author's youth in marketing campaigns. I review scads of B-list books which are no better than most of the books I review by teenagers, and for many of the same reasons. The books by teenagers that I've read tend to be heavy on intellectually well-developed symbolism layered inexpertly into the text, so much sheer joy shining through a recognition that hey, a dove can mean this, or this, or this or a color can symbolize this, or this, or even this!, that the integration between story and symbolism shows its seams. Moreover, the ones I've read tend to be fairly simplistic and essentialist in morality and characterization. But nothing here distinguishes them from, say, most B-list fantasy.
It's just... if a 13 year old is constructing novels that are already at the quality of most B-list fantasy, that it seems to me that with a little bit more pushing and development and seasoning he or she will soon be writing books which are fantastic and rich. And I worry, as a reviewer, in a way that I shouldn't. I worry that early publication will discourage the young authors from learning and growing in their craft. I end trying to teach the authors in my reviews, even when I only have 60 words (a task which is doomed to fail even if it were the right thing to do), trying to say you could fix this book by changing here, and here, and here. I try to do that with all of my reviews, more fool me, but I angst about it more when the books are by teenagers.
I see a lot of reviewers contextualizing these books as Books by Kids when they review them, either pro or con. Either "a powerful and surprisingly sophisticated work from such a young author" or "could the publishers stop embarrassing us with these juvenile efforts". I don't do that. To me, reviewing the text on anything other than its own merits does a disservice to the readers of my review. My reviews aren't human interest pieces about young authors, they are purchasing advisories for librarians, teachers, and others. Ultimately, the author's age has little to do with the appropriateness of the text-in-hand for a given collection.
Moreover, two different methods of reviewing books by teenagers both really get stuck in my craw. The first is excessive praise. Yes, Eragon was an impressive feat for a teenager. But outside of the human interest pieces, can we move past that? Can we judge the book on its own merits? Can we talk about its writing quality, its use of tropes, its popularity, its characterizations?
Worse is those who get offended at the very notion of published books by teenagers. To those I can only say Exhibit A.: S. E. Hinton Tell me again that a teenager can never write an abiding classic, a fully-realized world with rich characters, gorgeous language, themes that pass the test of time.
So yes, I try my hardest to review these books entirely on their own merits. But it's hard, yo. All of these books are extremely impressive feats from young writers. They wouldn't be getting through the editorial process otherwise, no matter how much the publishing house hopes to use the author's youth in marketing campaigns. I review scads of B-list books which are no better than most of the books I review by teenagers, and for many of the same reasons. The books by teenagers that I've read tend to be heavy on intellectually well-developed symbolism layered inexpertly into the text, so much sheer joy shining through a recognition that hey, a dove can mean this, or this, or this or a color can symbolize this, or this, or even this!, that the integration between story and symbolism shows its seams. Moreover, the ones I've read tend to be fairly simplistic and essentialist in morality and characterization. But nothing here distinguishes them from, say, most B-list fantasy.
It's just... if a 13 year old is constructing novels that are already at the quality of most B-list fantasy, that it seems to me that with a little bit more pushing and development and seasoning he or she will soon be writing books which are fantastic and rich. And I worry, as a reviewer, in a way that I shouldn't. I worry that early publication will discourage the young authors from learning and growing in their craft. I end trying to teach the authors in my reviews, even when I only have 60 words (a task which is doomed to fail even if it were the right thing to do), trying to say you could fix this book by changing here, and here, and here. I try to do that with all of my reviews, more fool me, but I angst about it more when the books are by teenagers.
no subject
Date: 2008-05-21 01:18 pm (UTC)But getting a lot of feedback, positive feedback from people who aren't your relatives or your roommates, can really push people into making the effort. God knows I never wrote nearly as much when I wrote original stories only and nobody ever commented on them.