I apologize for the long post. I hope you don't mind.
I've read Farah Mendlesohn's article in The Horn Book. As an SF reader, I wish I agreed with more of her arguments. I remember very clearly sitting in a Library School class on YA lit as a guest speaker on Science Fiction dismissed Norton and Heinlein as "dated."
I'm grateful to Mendelsohn for pointing out the distinction between a child reader and a reading child. The reading child is one who reads Enid Blyton, Hugh Lofting, E. Nesbit, Rosemary Sutcliff, and Andre Norton and Robert Heinlein. All of whom are dated.
That said, I thought Mendlesohn's characterization of both YA and juvenile SF was orthogonal to reality. Many of Heinlein's most enduring juveniles are heavily relational-- Podkayne of Mars, Farmer in the Sky, Tunnel in the Sky. They aren't about "hooking up," it's true, but then, I disagree that that is a root characterization of YA.
YA protagonists are seeing the world for the first time. When a YA protagonist grapples with racism, or poverty, or death, they are engaging it for the first time. They are taking responsibility, they are taking control, they are exploring the world outside their childhood. I would argue that the same sense of "newness" and exploration, is endemic to science fiction, and that most popular SF is YA.
David Weber, Orson Scott Card, Lois McMaster Bujold, John Scalzi, Elizabeth Bear, Joe Haldeman. They are YA. They all have a "Let me show you the world," feel to them. "Let me suggest you think about this."-- with the assumption that the reader hasn't thought about it much before. Which isn't to say that the reader HASN'T thought about these things before. Only that stylistically, the writing proceeds from the position that the world and ideas presented are new to the reader. When adults read YA, or SF for that matter, I don't think it is because they are superannuated young adults. I think it is because they enjoy the style.
I think the argument that SF in YA is just doom and gloom is a straw man. I don't consider Orwell's 1984 SF, and I don't really consider Feed SF, either. I am willing to put "gloomy view of the imminent future" under the very wide umbrella of SF, but I am not willing to see this subgenre as a perversion of "Good sciencey-fictioney- SF". Why this subgenre is the only one represented in YA, is the question.
Farah Mendlesohn needs to show me the science fiction books that have been undervalued, or left unpublished, to convince me that it is action or inaction on the industry's part that is keeping good YA SF out of the market. I don't believe it is kept out of the market. The YA SF are all over there on the Science Fiction shelf and I haven't seen a good argument for moving them so long as Teens can find them. Most important to me, on the SF shelf they are free from the puritanical constraints they would be under if they were in the YA section. I think the SF people would like them moved-- people like TOR and Penguin-- because they want the sales. I'm interested in hearing arguments for moving them, but so far, I'm happy with them where they are.
no subject
I've read Farah Mendlesohn's article in The Horn Book. As an SF reader, I wish I agreed with more of her arguments. I remember very clearly sitting in a Library School class on YA lit as a guest speaker on Science Fiction dismissed Norton and Heinlein as "dated."
I'm grateful to Mendelsohn for pointing out the distinction between a child reader and a reading child. The reading child is one who reads Enid Blyton, Hugh Lofting, E. Nesbit, Rosemary Sutcliff, and Andre Norton and Robert Heinlein. All of whom are dated.
That said, I thought Mendlesohn's characterization of both YA and juvenile SF was orthogonal to reality. Many of Heinlein's most enduring juveniles are heavily relational-- Podkayne of Mars, Farmer in the Sky, Tunnel in the Sky. They aren't about "hooking up," it's true, but then, I disagree that that is a root characterization of YA.
YA protagonists are seeing the world for the first time. When a YA protagonist grapples with racism, or poverty, or death, they are engaging it for the first time. They are taking responsibility, they are taking control, they are exploring the world outside their childhood. I would argue that the same sense of "newness" and exploration, is endemic to science fiction, and that most popular SF is YA.
David Weber, Orson Scott Card, Lois McMaster Bujold, John Scalzi, Elizabeth Bear, Joe Haldeman. They are YA. They all have a "Let me show you the world," feel to them. "Let me suggest you think about this."-- with the assumption that the reader hasn't thought about it much before. Which isn't to say that the reader HASN'T thought about these things before. Only that stylistically, the writing proceeds from the position that the world and ideas presented are new to the reader. When adults read YA, or SF for that matter, I don't think it is because they are superannuated young adults. I think it is because they enjoy the style.
I think the argument that SF in YA is just doom and gloom is a straw man. I don't consider Orwell's 1984 SF, and I don't really consider Feed SF, either. I am willing to put "gloomy view of the imminent future" under the very wide umbrella of SF, but I am not willing to see this subgenre as a perversion of "Good sciencey-fictioney- SF". Why this subgenre is the only one represented in YA, is the question.
Farah Mendlesohn needs to show me the science fiction books that have been undervalued, or left unpublished, to convince me that it is action or inaction on the industry's part that is keeping good YA SF out of the market. I don't believe it is kept out of the market. The YA SF are all over there on the Science Fiction shelf and I haven't seen a good argument for moving them so long as Teens can find them. Most important to me, on the SF shelf they are free from the puritanical constraints they would be under if they were in the YA section. I think the SF people would like them moved-- people like TOR and Penguin-- because they want the sales. I'm interested in hearing arguments for moving them, but so far, I'm happy with them where they are.
hope