Darkness in YA: A Different Perspective

Now, before I go on much further, I want to state that our little OA group is quite diverse in our beliefs. Two of us are Mormons. One is Catholic. One is very liberal in her world views. A couple of the others are pretty moderately centered. I am a Christian. I think it is a great mix of viewpoints and thoughts. And because of this, I though it might be useful to represent my views on the topic shared yesterday on the blog about the article in Wall Street Journal.



I remember the day it came out. I'm not an avid Twitter user, but I couldn't help but notice the uproar in the writing community. All the tweets about #YAsaves. So, out of curiosity, I checked it out myself. Now being a Christian, I wasn't too surprised to find that I agreed with a good portion of the article. I have an almost 13 year old daughter and can understand the writer's concern.

Now, before everyone jumps down my throat, I don't think that Dark YA books should be banned or anything. But it is a growing trend to be "edgy".  And to the traditional publishing market, they label edgy as "real".

But the problem is... that type of writing is NOT real to my daughter. So where are the books for her? 

My daughter isn't dating.
My daughter isn't having sex.
My daughter doesn't cut herself or do drugs. Neither do her friends.
My daughter doesn't cuss. (And no, not even behind my back.)
She is a straight A student.
Gives no problems in class.
Well adjusted. Well liked by classmates. Wonderful relationship with her parents and siblings.
She has a well-defined moral grounding of what is right and wrong.
We talk openly, about ALL topics. She is not sheltered to what is going on in the world.

So why should my daughter's head be filled with dark images and topics? Especially when SHE HAS NO DESIRE TO DO SO.

Now, before you tell her to just go read Christian fiction, the Christian market for that age is small to non-existent. So why shouldn't YA have options that are relevant to gals, like her. At this point, she is still reading MG, because she is not given a lot of other choices.

We read Twilight together. I really appreciated the abstinence until marriage aspect of those books.

So I was wondering if you readers had any good suggestions of YA books with good moral undertones, and without all the dark and graphic topics so prevalent in the YA market.

Darkness In YA, Part I: The Voldemort Effect

You may or may not have heard about Meghan Cox Gurdon's article in the Wall Street Journal, "Darkness Too Visible". You may or may not have heard Meghan defend her argument in an interview with YA authors Maureen Johnson and Cheryl Rainfeld. 

You may or may not have read countless blog posts, Tweets, or Facebook statuses rallying against Meghan's article. Or maybe you read responses from sources like Publisher's Weekly, YA authors Laurie Halse Anderson, Jackie Morse Kessler, Sherman Alexie, and YA author/psychologist/blogger extraordinaire Sarah Fine. 

But you haven't heard from us here at Operation Awesome.

Which leads me to...

Harry Potter.

You see, according to Meghan Cox Gurdon, contemporary YA fiction is too dark. Bookstores are swamped with books about the bad stuff in life. With books about the brutal, ugly side of reality. 

So, in that sense, dark YA books are a bit like this dude:

"I am so evil I DON'T HAVE A PROPER NOSE!"--Dark YA Books/Voldemort

And this is what dark YA books look like when they're purchased:

"What's this? A teenager? LET ME TOUCH YOU AND SCAR YOU FOR LIFE!!!"--Dark YA Books/Voldemort

And this is what a dark YA book author looks like when they spread the darkness:

"ROFL!"--Dark YA Book Authors/Voldemort's Death Eaters

See? THESE AUTHORS ARE REALLY, REALLY TWISTED.

*blinks*

Folks, the Voldemort Effect has been ascribed to YA fiction. Dark books are The Big Bad. It-Which-Must-Not-Be-Read. They are ruining teenagers' lives, filling their heads with thoughts of suicide, homicide, eating disorders, and sex. These dark books glamorize dangerous behaviors and threaten the emotional/psychological well-being of teens. (SPOILER: in Meghan's interview with the aforementioned YA authors, Meghan failed to provide a single shred of evidence that supports her argument). 

Honestly? That's all bullpoopy to me, but what I have trouble with is this: what is dark? I just think it's a subjective term, as is every other term ever invented. So that's why I'm leaving it up to you, folks. What is dark in YA to you? If you read contemporary YA, do you think Voldemort's Death Eaters contemporary YA authors should cut back on the realistic topics? Or do you enjoy their work regardless? Leave your (awesome) opinions in the comments! :)