Two Cents Discussion: What Do You Think of New Adult?

I would still love to hear why you read, so if you didn't participate in last week's discussion be sure to click over to it and let me know.

What do you think about New Adult?

We have children books, middle grades or juvenile literature, young adult and adult. Now a new target audience label has been "created" - New Adult. It is meant to be coming of age stories for 20 and 30 somethings. Many of themes are the same as those for older young adult, but with older characters facing more adult situations. According to Wikipedia, the term was first used in 2009 by St. Martin's Press.

I would argue that it isn't really a new target audience, just that more genres are targeting this audience. If you think of most chick-lit novels, they are coming of age stories and the characters are usually in their 20s or early 30s. They were quirky and made light of the stressful situations these new adults were facing - finding jobs, finding love, establishing themselves as adults.

So what do you think about New Adult? Do we need this "new" label? Have you read New Adult fiction? Are authors taking advantage of this "hot" market and mis-marketing their book?

Leave a comment below, or if you would like to start this discussion on your blog leave a link to your post.

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Two Cents Discussion: Why Do You Read?

If you missed out on last week's discussion on what makes a book a classic you can still add your thoughts. I thought this week would be fun to talk about why we read. I'm sure we all have different reasons.

Why Do You Read?

When I hear people say they don't read, I'm don't know what to think. Reading seems to be at the core of who I am. But it did get me thinking about why I read. Is it just because it was something that my parents encouraged when it was a child? Or was it because I was an on the outskirts of the "in crowd" and I find solace in books as a teen? Do I read because I have learned life lessons and explored worlds beyond my own within the pages of a book?

I think part of the reason is I was exposed to books at a young age. I remember climbing in my Mom's lap to read each night. I remember the first time I "read" the book on my own.

As I got older, books were an escape, but also a reminder that there was more out there than the cliquish community I was in. I didn't feel so alone when reading. It gave me hope. I could read about the awkward tween who found friends and acceptance.

Now I read for entertainment. When television stopped using analog waves, I stopped having television (used an antenna, but am too far away to pick up digital). So I began to read more.

I still read to explore new worlds, but also to connect to people. Through books I can "walk in another man's shoes". Reading is still an escape, but not because I'm an unhappy teen, but as a way to deal with life's stresses.

I read because I have to. Yes, I feel obligated to read the books I've received for review, but the compulsion is more than that. I can't drive by a sign without reading it, even if I drive by the same sign every day. I will read the cereal box and shampoo bottle. Did you know there's a warning on deodorant that says to use on armpits only?

I read for many reasons. Why do you read?

Two Cents Discussion: What Makes a Book a Classic

I've been writing discussion type posts all week for Armchair BEA, so I'm just going to delve right in with today's topic:

What Makes a Book a Classic?

Often we equate literature with classic, but as we saw last week during day one of Armchair BEA that literature means any written word. Yeah, Fifty Shades of Grey is literature. But there are books we all agree are classics, however, when I think "classic" I think of all the books I read in high school.

Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

That's just a few of the titles that come to mind when I think "classic". All of those titles were published in the 1800s. Does classic mean old?

Not necessarily, there are a number of titles from the 1900s that we think of as classics.

Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
1984 by George Orwell

But we are still looking at books more than 50 years old. Can a book published in the last decade be a classic? A number of people think Harry Potter is a classic. Will Hunger Games or Divergent become a classic? They are both very popular. Does popularity make a book a classic?

I'm not sure if popularity is enough of a reason for a book to be a classic. Look at Twilight and the a fore mentioned Fifty Shades of Grey they were/are huge hits. Twilight inspired many to try writing and they have become successful authors. But I don't think it will be a classic.

Definitely I believe that the writing style and storytelling abilities of the author play a part in a book becoming a classic. But looking at my list of classics there also seems to be a theme to them. The all provide commentary on culture or society; usually there is a character that goes against the rules or at least pushes the boundaries.

What do you think makes a book a classic? Bonus - What books today do you think might become classics?

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Two Cents Discussion: Which Book Format Do You Prefer

Last week's dystopian discussion was great. Did you miss it? You can still add your two cents to the post. With Book Expo of America and the at-home version Armchair BEA starting on Monday, I thought I would do an "easy" topic. By the way, I will be participating in the daily topics at Armchair BEA so there will be a LOT of book related discussions going on and I do hope you will check out my posts throughout the week.

Which Book Format Do You Prefer?

I don't really get all the ebook versus print arguments, and where does audio books fit? (were there audio book versus print years ago when audio books were first made available?)

I love books no matter the format. However, there are times that a format is preferred over another. Like, when driving in the car, washing dishes, lounging in the tub. Then audio books are definitely the preferred format. My hands are free but I'm still entertained. Also, there could be some books that are better in audio. I loved Room by Emma Donoghue and Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen on audio. I'm not sure if I would have been as engaged in the story if it hadn't been in audio. On the flip side, I couldn't get into The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern and I think I would have been better off reading The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.

I have stacks of paperbacks and hardcovers. Books that I love to re-read, I prefer to have in print. I like to be able to flip to favorite passages when I don't have time to read the whole thing. Harry Potter is a must in print as is K. B. Hoyle's The Gateway Chronicles. Books with cool covers are also better in print.

For ease of access, ebooks are the absolute best. I was resistant to buy an eReader, but I have LOVED it. I love always having a book with me. It makes reading a book at lunch so much easier. I do get frustrated when I want to flip back to something to double check what I had read. That is easier for me in print. But the benefit of being able to increase font size has kept me reading much later into the night (well, maybe that isn't such a good thing.)

So how about you? Do you have a preference or like me think all formats have their merits? Throw in your two cents.

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Two Cents Discussion: Why is the Dystopian Genre So Popular?

At the Fierce Reads book signing, Lindsay Smith, author of Sekret,  said something that I thought was very applicable to this discussion. She wanted to write a book set in an oppressive state, but she didn't want to write a dystopian novel.

I have wondered for a while why the genre is so popular, particularly in young adult literature. The thought of a dystopian society is depressive and definitely not something most people would want to live in. What about these "awful" societies is so attractive that they are selling millions of copies and landing on the big screen?

Perhaps it isn't the actual society, but what they represent. Smith's statement solidified this thought for me. We have seen dystopian type societies in history. Nazi Germany and the Jewish Ghettos, Communist Russia and the Siberian work camps, and more. I also think most people would think society as a whole is getting worse and not better. The encroachment of government in the personal lives of citizens is rapidly increasing. Yet, little is being done to combat any of this.

Which leads me to the second reason I believe dystopian novels are appealing, particularly to the next generation. I wonder if my generation is even capable of revolution. If we were living at the time of the American Revolution would we have just sat on our hands and still be bowing to a monarch? Could my generation have fueled the protest of the Civil Rights Movement? We do have the Occupy Movement, but is it really effective?

There is always a Revolutionary, whether the character wants to be or not, in a dystopian novel. I believe that is the real draw of these novels. I think at the core of our very being we want to set things right, see justice for the oppressed, stand up for freedom... Yet, for some reason we feel powerless to affect change in our own time. It is so much easier to settle for the status quo, but there in lies the problem. The status quo won't even be maintained without some effort. Those seeking power and control are master manipulators and they will chip away at our society until one day we wake up, but then it may be too late.

And there lies the reason I think the dystopian genre has become so popular. It gives us some measure of hope that someone will push back, there will be someone to rally the troops once more, to be our generation's George Washington or Martin Luther King, Jr.

What do you think? Add your two cents either in the comments or get the discussion started on your blog and link up your post below.





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Two Cents Discussion: Is Sex Required for a Great Romance Novel?

We had a great discussion last week about what makes a book a favorite. If you missed it, you can still drop your two cents in the comments on that post. You can add your two cents to this discussion by leaving a comment, writing your own post and link it up below, or share on Twitter, Facebook, etc to get the discussion going with your friends and fans.

Does a love story have to contain sex scenes to be a great romance novel?

I like romance and I actually prefer there to be a little love in the air between characters in most of the books I read. Yet, my long time readers know that I don't care for sex scenes. But it isn't just not wanting sex in the book. It is more about how the sex is portrayed. When the scene is only physical description of hand (and other body parts) placement and moan it is rarely adding anything to the story for me. One exception is a manuscript I content edited. The main character was a sex addict, though that isn't disclosed to the reader until a little later in the story. The sex was only physical for him and through the description of the act, the reader sees that there is no emotional connection and his actions inform the reader to an aspect of his personality.

If the scene is there just to add a measure of "hotness" to the story, for me it actually cools my reading pleasure. The story would be better served fading to black and getting on with the more important parts of the story.

If an author wants to add hotness through sex scenes, then they should focus on the emotions, the connection that is being formed between the two characters. An excellent example is Sylvain Reynard's trilogy: Gabriel's Inferno, Gabriel's Rapture, and Gabriel's Redemption. After reading the first book in the series, I really had to think about was there sex in the book. That's because the actually act was wrapped in the emotions, the devotion, love the characters shared.

So that's my two cents. What do you think? Link up with your own post or leave a comment below.

Next week's topic: Why is the dystopian genre so popular, particularly in young adult fiction?

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Two Cents Discussion: What Makes a Book Your Favorite

What does a book lover love besides reading books? Talking about books. To allow us to talk a bit more about books, each week at Girl Who Reads there will be a discussion topic and everyone is welcomed to throw in their "two cents". You can do that by leaving a comment or if you are also a blogger and think your readers would want to get in on the discussion, you can post your response on your blog and link to it below. Let's get to this week's topic

What makes a book your favorite?

I'm always being asked what is my favorite book. It is so terribly difficult to narrow it down to one. Even when I limit myself to favorite book this year it is still difficult. However, when I really think about it my favorite books all have something in common. A book becomes a favorite when I'm so connected to the characters that I think of them as friends.

I have mentioned before that I will be forgiving of a weakish plot if I fall in love with the characters.

I have to be able to identify with the characters... feel something for them. It doesn't mean the character(s) is just like me. Often, the character has qualities I admire. Usually it is someone I want to be friends with or perhaps be like. Other times it is someone that I come to care about in a protective sense (I read a lot of books where the characters have an illness or are in extreme danger).

A good story line that pulls at my heartstrings combined with characters that I love is guaranteed to become a favorite of mine.


Next week's topic: Does a love story have to contain sex scenes to be a good romance novel?


Link up:

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New Feature: Two Cents Discussion

What does a book lover love besides reading books? Talking about books. One of the reasons Girl Who Reads got started was because I love talking about books and reading related topics with other book enthusiasts. To allow us to talk a bit more about books, each week at Girl Who Reads there will be a discussion topic and everyone is welcomed to throw in their "two cents". You can do that by leaving a comment or if you are also a blogger and think your readers would want to get in on the discussion, you can post your response on your blog and link to it.

Each Sunday, a new topic will be introduced and then we can spend the week talking about it. For bloggers that like to schedule their posts ahead of time the following week's topic will be at the bottom of the post. And for the bloggers that fly a little more by the seat of their pants, the linky will be open all week so you can join in any time.

As the feature title indicates, I don't expect your "two cents" to be an in depth analysis (not that there is anything wrong if you want to do that). Instead, I hope you will participate in the discussions that occur here, on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, your own blog, etc. I want this to be fun and maybe get you thinking a little bit, but above all I want this to be a time for the community to engage with one another.

For the first week, we will start off kind of easy. So put on your thinking caps and come by next Sunday (the post will be live at 7 am US eastern time on May 4) to talk about...

What makes a book your favorite?