tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21595692.post115792386491367154..comments2023-11-02T06:17:05.764-04:00Comments on Ranting Nerd: Favorite Fantasy Booksrantingnerdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00192899727951019414noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21595692.post-1157976232875660482006-09-11T08:03:00.000-04:002006-09-11T08:03:00.000-04:00I used the scare quotes around "young adult" preci...I used the scare quotes around "young adult" precisely because I think the marketing categorization is at least part of the problem with people taking YA fiction seriously. Clearly that came across so well. :-)rantingnerdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00192899727951019414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21595692.post-1157940694911247912006-09-10T22:11:00.000-04:002006-09-10T22:11:00.000-04:00Ooop, I didn't mean to put you on a hook! I just f...Ooop, I didn't mean to put you <I>on</I> a hook! I just find the topic interesting so I picked it up.<BR/><BR/>Jadelennox and I are often in the position of needing to defend the seriousness and complexity of children's books. If I ever sound ranty at you, that's why. But hey, you're a ranting nerd TOO, eh, so maybe it's okay? :)<BR/><BR/>-cwAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21595692.post-1157940087177511332006-09-10T22:01:00.000-04:002006-09-10T22:01:00.000-04:00Oh, fine, be That Way (aka reasonable). The scare...Oh, fine, be That Way (aka reasonable). The scare quotes are ambiguous, I admit it.<BR/><BR/>And in any case, re HDM, I said "arguably". Doesn't that get me off the hook? :-)rantingnerdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00192899727951019414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21595692.post-1157938776826657832006-09-10T21:39:00.000-04:002006-09-10T21:39:00.000-04:00Hmm. I'm not sure I can agree about the YA categor...Hmm. I'm not sure I can agree about the YA categorization being silly, not just because my field is based on it, but also because I believe the definition is about more than just marketing. I see silliness in categorization, but I also see value in it. But it is your list. :)<BR/><BR/>His Dark Materials is absolutely intense and disturbing. But plenty of YA lit is like that. I posit that HDM seems so intense not necessarily because it addresses deeper or darker things than other YA fare, but because Pullman is such a brilliant writer. He's a master of vivid storytelling and complexity. He's <I>better</I> than most writers.<BR/><BR/>The YA category doesn't have a solid formula, but it does have criteria. IMO, HDM is YA. *sits on hands not to start rambling about YA criteria* I hope you don't mind my spouting on your blog. You hit upon my soapbox. :)<BR/><BR/>-colorwheelAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21595692.post-1157937396681787232006-09-10T21:16:00.000-04:002006-09-10T21:16:00.000-04:00Colorwheel --I put "young adult" in scare quotes b...Colorwheel --<BR/><BR/>I put "young adult" in scare quotes because I think the categorization is silly. (Marketing == silly, in most cases, the way I see it.) The Prydain books are great. They're marketed as "YA". <BR/><BR/>And His Dark Materials is very intense and seriously disturbing in places, far more so than most YA-marketed stuff. (I'm thinking mostly of the first half of the Will plot in <I>The Subtle Knife</I>, which put my wife off her lunch for a good while -- and she reads "trapped in the mountain pass, have to eat each other to survive" books with great glee.)rantingnerdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00192899727951019414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21595692.post-1157925926055629462006-09-10T18:05:00.000-04:002006-09-10T18:05:00.000-04:00Curious:a) re. Prydain, why is "young adult" in qu...Curious:<BR/><BR/>a) re. Prydain, why is "young adult" in quotation marks?<BR/><BR/>2) re. His Dark Materials: why "arguably not for" young adults?<BR/><BR/>:)<BR/>-colorwheelAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com