Speed Reading through YA
Jun
4
categories : Being Bookish
At the suggestion of my book blogger friends I recently read my very first YA novel (The Hunger Games – you’ll see my gush….er, review posted here in the next day) and I was astounded at how quickly I was able to get through it from start to finish. Now what you need to know about me is that I am NOT a quick reader. Ever. Yet from cover to cover I think it took me about 8 hours to read all 380+ pages of this book.
Vaaarooommmm! Go Speed Racer Go!
Anyway, today on Twitter there were the beginnings of a discussion on why it is that these titles sometimes tend to be a faster read. I know it’s not because they are fluffy by nature as many cover heavy topics like war, abuse and eating disorders. So ultimately I’m stuck with the why? Why is it that the titles in the Young Adult genre are a “faster” read? Is it because they’re so compelling that we’re caught up and can’t put it down? Or maybe it’s because we we’re all young adults once and we can relate to characters in some capacity.
So the question I pose to all is why do you think Young Adult Novels are a quick read?
Nymeth:
I hope you don’t mind if I answer with a quote, but I think Nick Hornby put it perfectly in Shakespeare Wrote for Money:
“These young-adult novels I have been hoovering up are not light in the sense that they are disposable or unmemorable. On the contrary, they have all, without exception, been smart, complicated, deeply felt, deeply meant. They are light, however, in the sense that they are not built to resist your interest in them: they want to be read quickly and effortlessly.”
I think that’s a big part of the reason why. I imagine that a lot of YA authors have that specific concern: making their books not light, but engaging. Making sure they hook the reader from the start. Of course, you do find some excellent YA novels that have more dense language (like Tender Morsels, which I adored, and from what I hear, Jellicoe Road and Octavian Nothing), but most of the time, that’s not the case.
June 4, 2009 at 10:41 am (Quote)
Debbie:
Love, love, love The Hunger Games and am so jealous of everyone who got a copy of Catching Fire. I usually get through YA books pretty quick too. I think it’s because the stories really grab me and I can’t put it down. I was finishing Vampire Academy, Twilight, Willow, etc all within a day. I read Wake and Fade in one sitting because they were so good.
June 4, 2009 at 11:06 am (Quote)
Stephanie:
I think Nymeth is spot on – they really are irresistable!
June 4, 2009 at 11:59 am (Quote)
bethany (Dreadlock Girl):
I love them because they deal with the issues, and some very heavy ones…but with a bit of distance and more of the idea of it versus the gore and guts. I would rather deal with heavy issues in books that way, that is my reason for loving them.
I just finished The Hunger Games too, and even though it is violent and somewhat dark, it doesn’t make you feel all horrible like it would if it were a book for adults. I think YA authors are better at dealing what readers can handle, especially readers that read a lot. I read a ton and if I am sucked into constant darkness topic after topic and book after book I will be doomed to burnout.
There are some other YA books that I love: The Book Thief, The Teashop Girls, The Invention of Hugo Cabret and The Hunger Games. Really, I haven’t ever read a bad YA book! I hadn’t realized that before.
June 4, 2009 at 12:06 pm (Quote)
Kevin Holtsberry:
I enjoy reading them for the same reason – and the fact that they just seem better in the fantasy fiction genre than a lot of “adult” – and I think it does have something to do with not trying to wow readers with language but really tell a story. The have often have a directness that others lack.
June 4, 2009 at 12:10 pm (Quote)
Liz B:
YA is, usually, better written and edited; and more tightly plotted.
June 4, 2009 at 4:04 pm (Quote)
Jen - Devourer of Books:
They also may be written at a slightly lower grade level, although they may not SEEM like it when they’re well-written, but I agree with Nymeth, the’re written to suck you in and keep you going.
June 5, 2009 at 4:33 am (Quote)
Meghan:
YA books are generally designed to capture the interest of a busy, distractable audience, if that makes sense. I think they definitely can be well written and deal with deeper meanings, but they also have to be great stories. I don’t think teens are willing to wade through sloooow stuff. I think that’s why so many people aren’t readers, because most books that we read in school are slow and thoughtful.
I seriously can’t wait for my copy of Hunger Games to arrive!
June 5, 2009 at 6:28 am (Quote)
Nicole:
I agree with all of the above They are tightly plotted and they suck you in right away. No 0pages waiting to meet all the characters or for the action to start.
An even simpler reason is that the print is bigger in YA books. Given a 400 page adult novel and a 400 page YA novel, the YA book has to be the faster read.
June 6, 2009 at 4:21 am (Quote)
Nicole:
The 4 on my keyboard is cranky. That should be 40.
June 6, 2009 at 4:22 am (Quote)
Belle:
I tend to find the voice in a YA novel more engaging, which usually translates to a quicker read. As to why the voice is more engaging to me, I’m not sure!
June 7, 2009 at 2:17 pm (Quote)