The Blogosphere

Part of my independent study into young adult literature has been to follow the online blog discussion. I have found some great ones to follow. My favorites are: http://yzocaet.blogspot.com/ and http://theundercoverbooklover.blogspot.com/, but there are many good ones. This weekend the blog community was engaged in quite a debate. How timely that I wanted to write about Sisters Red as it has become the subject of much debate this weekend. The simplist way to explain what happened is that Bitch Magazine made a list of the top 100 books for feminist girls. It got negative comments about three books, these books were then removed from the list. It's very well documented here: http://www.chasingray.com/archives/2011/02/how_to_not_stand_up_literature.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ChasingRay+%28Chasing+Ray%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

I was very interested in this debate because I particulary seek out what I like to call "damsel-free" YA literature (http://damsel-free.blogspot.com/) ; so, a feminist YA booklist would normally be very exciting for me.Though I was not able to read through all of the blog discussions on this matter, I do have some opinions about what went down:

1. In defense of Sisters Red: Sisters Red was removed from this "list" because of one particular passage in which Scarlett, one the protagonists, supposedly engages in "victim-blaming" the "dragonflies"- girls who the Fenris prey on because they draw attention to themselves. While I can see how one could read that idea into that passage, I don't think that was the initial intent. Scarlett is a very angry girl. Her angers manifests itself in different ways and who she blames for the life leads and her own physical mutilation shifts throughout the novel. In this particular case, it falls on the girls she is trying to protect, who are not aware, and therefore not appreciative of what she is doing to protect them. The passage is not really about the other girls at all. It is about Scarlett's own personal demons and the regret and resentment she feels from being attacked.

Furthermore, I believe there is a big difference between an opinion a character states in the book and what the author is trying to say. It is very clear, from the rest of the novel, that the author does not agree with the statement Scarlett uses that is causing so much fury. A book should not be judged for one passage that the rest of the book pretty much negates.

2. I have not read Tender Morsels or Living Dead Girl (though I now intend to), so I cannot really speak for them. However, I am very uncomfortable overall about how this whole situation went down. Many posters have said it is analogous to censorship or banning books from libraries. While removing books from a list, is not nearly as extreme as the cases above, I can see these posters view. It is always disheartening when a book is removed from any list or shelf because of a few peoples' opinions. It shows a lack of openness to a diversity of ideas and, quite frankly, dismisses the credibility of those removing the literature.

3. In terms of the other authors wanting their books removed from the list after the 3 other books were removed, I say more power to them! I would not want to be associated with this situation either. Scott Westerfield (author of the wonderful Uglies series) is particularly sassy in his reply: http://scottwesterfeld.com/blog/2011/02/bitchfest/. But I loved it! I was so proud of how other members of the YA community came to the defense of their fellow authors. It made me very proud to be sort of finding my own place in this community.

I will follow this story more, but for now, these are my thoughts. And please, everyone, give Sisters Red a chance. It reallyis such a lovely book!

Sisters Red

Sisters Red by Jackson Pearce is a modern day re-telling of Red Riding Hood. It is an interesting take on the old fairy tale in that the two main young female protagonists, the March sisters, having once been the wolves’ prey now become its hunters. The story of Sisters Red revolves around two sisters, Scarlett and Rosie (get it, variations of red, haha!) who when they were younger were attacked in their grandmother’s house by a Fenris (this story's version of a wolf). Creepily, Fenris look like attractive young men in order to lure in their prey. The girl’s grandmother is killed during the attack and they are left to fend for themselves. They become life-long advocates of protecting young women from these beasts.

The sisters’ are aided by Scarlett’s best friend, Silas, who comes from a family of woodsman. Rosie and Silas develop feelings for one another and struggle to find out how to tell Scarlett. Silas also teaches them how to defend themselves against the Fenris and protect other young women in the process. This particular section of the girls’ saga focuses on a mission to prevent a new Fenris from being “born.” Without giving too much away they three characters go on a journey that test there loyalty to each other and their cause.

Since the reimagining of fairy tales seems to be in vogue, it is a good time to examine Sisters Red, and its companion novel Sweetly (Hansel + Gretel). What separates this book from other fantasy and paranormal romance stories, was that the protagonists were so interesting. In genre where girls are often wishy-washy or so non-distinct so as to have no personality, this book was refreshing. Of course, the twist ending does not hurt either!


If you like this book, try:
Sweetly by Jackson Pearce, Smoke and Mirrors by Neil Gaiman, the Wicked Lovely series by Melissa Marr (if only for the character of Donia)...and for more southern-gothic YA, check out Four and Twenty Blackbirds by Cherie Priest (the first of a series with another strong herione, Eden Moore).

How to Say Goodbye in Robot

I really like young adult fiction, but I really do not like reading about teen romance. I understand it is a prominent issue for that age, but quite frankly unless it is under the guise of the larger issue (like The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins) it is hard to be involved in such drama. This is probably because the feelings are portrayed one dimensionally – pure infatuation. Every once and a while there is a novel that moves beyond this and contains a story with greater dimension. Natalie Standiford’s How to Say Goodbye in Robot is a quirky tale about a transfer student in a Baltimore school (Beatrice Szabo aka Robot Girl---what an awesome name!) and her complex relationship with her school’s resident loner (Jonah aka Ghost Boy). What makes Beatrice’s relationship with Jonah more interesting is the different layers of their friendship. The two are not “lovers”, but they are not simply friends.

SPOILER SECTION

Standiford also manages to keep us very much within the world that Beatrice sees, enabling the reader to connect with Beatrice and see the teen infatuation without making it seem contrived. For instance, the character of Wally, who eventually becomes the love interest, is virtually invisible to the reader, as Beatrice herself does not truly see him. In additon, the reader sees Beatrice's parents relationship only from Beatrice's perspective. Rather than dealing with her parents divorce with angst and self-pity, Beatrice is angry with her mother for not trying in the relationship. Nothing about the confrontation is contrived. Her emotions are real, without being overdramatic and self-indulgence.

If you like this book. try:
Looking for Alaska by John Green, The Betrayal of Natalie Hargrove (A quirky modern Macbeth story) by Lauren Kate, My Most Excellent Year: A Novel of Love, Mary Poppins, and Fenway Park by Steve Kluger, Sorta Like a Rock Star by Matthew Quick