TGIF! (7)

TGIF is brought to us by Ginger at GReads!

It's a way for bloggers to celebrate the end of the week with a nice re-cap of their weekly posts and to answer a random question.

YA Saves: How do you feel about the "dark" books filling our YA shelves today?

I don't think any of the YA books are "dark." At least, not in the sense "dark" is being taken these days. I think some YA books are "depressing" or "raw" or "insightful." Not "dark."  "Dark" - as it's been used in the past few days/weeks - undermines YA literature.  To say YA books are "dark" is to say that no good comes from them.  As an avid reader of YA literature, I have to disagree; the good comes in many different forms, but it's there, even in "dark" YA books.

Do I personally agree with every action or thought attributed to the heroes/heroines/characters in the "dark" books? No, of course not. There's always going to be that girl that feels she needs to be perfect. There's always going to be that guy (or many guys) looking for nothing but sex. There's always going to be the overlooked best friend that needs you in times of trouble, even though you're fighting. There's always going to be the damsel in distress that makes men appear superior.  There's always going to be the fighter.  There's always going to be the winner and the loser.  But just because there's always going to be these things - these types of characters - it doesn't mean that I have to be, or will be, like any of them. It doesn't mean one, two, three books are going to overturn my own sense of reality and identity.

Even if the issues/problems have never personally happened to me before, it doesn't mean I should be ignorant of them. 

I don't think there's anything wrong with "dark" books filling our shelves. I think it's about time people tackle the issues few are willing to discuss/express out loud or in person. The good's always there. Some just refuse to see it.

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Playing Hurt thank you!

Waiting on Wednesday
REVIEW! For Keeps
In My Mailbox

Coming up this week:

Review of Going Bovine by Libba Bray!