Thursday 3 July 2014

Using Young Adult Book Reviews

By Rosella Campbell


When they are young children usually love stories. Reading them before bedtime is a good way to get them to relax. As they get older they then start discovering stories for themselves. The problem comes past the age of eleven and into the teenage years when reading starts to seem more like a chore rather than something that can be fun and enjoyable. This is where young adult book reviews can come in handy!

The first thing to make clear is that the term YA or young adult refers to the intended audience. It is not necessarily a genre in and of itself. Certain types of popular titles have suggested a certain type of story but as with any audience there are a wide array of possible genres that a young reader might be interested in reading.

A common genre people associate with young readers are romance novels. Given that this is a time when they are growing up it often helps to have characters that are going through the same emotional problems as they are. The fantasy situation can often make it easier for people exploring issues in real life.

However this does not necessarily mean that a YA story has to be realistic. Indeed a lot of the most successful titles have been based in the supernatural, fantasy or science fiction genres. Furthermore many of the stories have often had appeal for adults with many stories providing a good balance of well crafted story with elements of humour and satire.

Another issue is that when it comes to growing out of reading boys have a tendency to grow out of reading more than girls. However there are ways around this. For example a lot of comics, video games and so forth often have spin off books and novelisations that can help engage them. Often it is the characters and not the medium that they find engaging.

Reviews are a great way to help kids find something they want to read. Whereas it can be hard to read through something a parent might have got for them they are more likely to read something it was recommended by someone in their age range who has similar interests. Therefore when looking for reviews you should also look for the kind of genre they like.

However it is also worth encouraging your children to look at reviews from their own peer group. As well as helping them find titles they will want to read it also helps to normalise reading as an activity. Over time they will then be more likely to seek out books for themselves and find the titles that they personally enjoy rather than feeling they have to read because they have been told to.

The reason that young adult books are so important is because they help to maintain a love for reading. The problem is if they get out of the habit then they may not return. This is why the right reviews can help you ensure that your children associate with reading as something they can do for themselves and not just something that has to be done in the classroom.




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