I Read YA!

This week, we're celebrating young adult books and people who read YA with #IReadYA week! 

I have a confession to make. Before I started working at Scholastic, over 2 ½ years ago, I didn’t read kids’ books. Or YA. I’ve been an avid reader for as long as I can remember…so I’m sure I devoured tween and teen books when I was in school. I grew up with Harry Potter, and was in college when the last book came out (which, of course, I read immediately) but after that? Like Deimosa, I have to pause to address the Twilight phenomenon: A friend sent me the series for a graduation gift, so I read those…but mostly because I felt like I had to. To be honest it really never occurred to me to even look at YA books when I was in the bookstore. I had no idea what I was missing.

When I got an interview at Scholastic, I was beyond thrilled. I remembered the books I grew up reading and loving, but I wasn't too familiar with the current popular books.After a quick search, it was clear - I needed to read The Hunger Games. Or at least be familiar with it! 

When I started at Scholastic, I wanted to be as immersed in this book culture as possible. I started borrowing books from our library so I could get an idea for the recent popular titles. I figured I would just skim some of the backlist titles. Then I started noticing interesting books on co-workers' desks, so I started borrowing those too (with their permission, of course!), and then the public library. THEN I started hearing about exciting new books. It just snowballed from there. When friends and family asked me what I was reading, I'd brush it off, saying "oh, just a new kid's book for work." Then I'd quickly move on to the last adult book I read.

I slowly realized there is nothing wrong with reading YA. I think many adults who aren't familiar with the books underestimate it. They think it's silly, or without value. But the lines between "adult books" and "YA books" seem to be blurring. And I've found so many YA books that are smart, but still fun and interesting. Books that are so creative and powerful. These are the books that keep me up at night thinking, just one more chapter and I'll go to bed (but it's never just 1 more chapter!) Books that are such great page turners, you can't wait until the next time you can stand in a line or ride the subway, just so you have a few more minutes to read. 

2 ½ years at Scholastic and I'm still devouring books for all ages - adults, middle grade, picture books, and of course, YA. In fact, a quick look at my most recently read books on Goodreads shows the majority of them are YA. The bookshelf in my apartment is mostly YA books I want to read...and that doesn't include the other 20 or so I have on my desk at work or want to borrow from the library. But now I am proud to say: I READ YA!