Yes, it is Young Adult literature, I get that. When I shared with a friend how much I was enjoying the story I got, " Aren't those books for teenagers?" Harry Potter certainly wasn't written with me in mind either but I love those stories. Even The Hobbit was originally written by Tolkien as a children's story. The way I look at it is, if it is well written, if I enjoy it, if it is a story that makes me want to turn each page and, if I can imagine in my mind he world the author has created, who cares who the target audience is.
I remember a composition I wrote when I was in grade 3. I wish I still had it. I'm quite sure it was a complete rip off of a mixture of Simon in the Land of the Chalk Drawings and The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. It had to do with going over the hedge in our backyard that resulted in entering a secret land. I love these types of stories. I always have.
When I read The Philosophers Stone, the moment Hagrid took Harry through the back door of The Leaky Cauldron and tapped his umbrella/wand on the bricks to open the way to Diagon Alley, I was 10 years old again. When I saw the movie, I cried at that scene. It was so perfect. So well done. Exactly as I saw it in my head as I was reading the book. I think about some of my favorite books, TV shows and films childhood through adulthood: The Secret Garden, Peter Pan, The Wizard of Oz, Bedknobs and Broomsticks, Narnia, Mary Poppins, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, The Spiderwick Chronicles, Stardust, even The Land of the Lost. The Hunger Games reminded me of these stories a little with Katniss and Gale going under the fence into the woods. Leaving the every day world to go on an adventure.
Another thing I really like about the character of Katniss Everdeen was her sense of self and her strength. If I had a young daughter I would be happy if she wanted to be like Katniss. I even made Adam laugh when I mentioned that if he & I were to go to Comic-Con I would want to cosplay her.
I will admit right here and now, I read The Twilight series. I enjoyed them for what they were. What I enjoyed about them was it brought back the feeling of that first love we've all experienced. When you're a teenage girl and everything revolves around the boy. I had my own Edward when I was a teenager. He didn't sparkle or watch me sleep at night, but he did have blond hair and was pale ;) He was my everything. What Stephanie Meyer did unfortunately was create a character who didn't evolve. The casting of Kristen Stewart didn't help matters as that girl has two facial expressions;
1. Blank stare.
2. Blank stare while biting lip.
This photo and this quote from Stephen King really do say it best:
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"Harry Potter is about confronting fears, finding inner strength and doing what is right in the face of adversity. Twilight is about how important it is to have a boyfriend." — Stephen King
I was sad to read the last page of Mockingjay. Luckily I do have the film The Hunger Games to look forward to opening next week. So far the reviews are positive. I'm looking forward to seeing The Capitol, Peeta's camouflage in the arena, and The Hob.
What I have to decide now is what to read next.
