You know what YA urban fantasy/acton is missing?

[author_by_night]

Teenagers.

Hear me out, okay?

Comments

[ragnarok_08]

You are absolutely right here - YA novels should be about growing up, which is rough but has a lot of moments that no one should skim over.

[rhoda_rants]

I like this theory! Makes so much sense. You see so few teen books set in schools where they actually go to school, and not just fretting about classes, but all the social navigating and mishaps and finding-of-oneself that goes with it. Buffy and HP were ace at that.

[sherrilina]

I have some recs for you, based on this post: first, the Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead (ignore the terrible name). It combines the magical school/hidden magical worldworld-building (with its own messed up politics and racial/class issues) of HP with the snark and vampire-slaying training of BTVS. The main character, Rose, is training to be a guardian against the evil undead type of vampiresvampires, Strigoi (the vampire mythology is based on Romanian lore, which makes for an interesting change of pace). Just as in HP, later books move away from the school environment, but it's a big presence early on. And the book centers on the bond between Rose and her best friend Lissa

[rhoda_rants]

Seconding Vampire Academy--it's awesome!

[author_by_night]

I'll have to check those out!

I used to read The Princess Diaries and always liked how Meg Cabot wrote teenagers.

[vaysh]

Fascinating thoughts, and I find myself nodding along. Especially the YA lit should be about growing up. I have a feeling because YA lit has become a genre that is considered a. to have bestselling potential and b. is increasingly read by all ages, authors and publishers want the books to appeal to both YA and fully adult audiences, and thus different themes and plots are introduced.

[author_by_night]

Ah, interesting, though I'd argue that Harry Potter had a lot of adult fans - but not everyone sees it that way.

[thegrownupthing]

I really loved this post - I'm glad it's public because I want to share it with someone :)