On Friday The New York Times posted an essay, Boys and Reading: Is There Any Hope? by author Robert Lipsyte. The essay focuses on the lack of books in the current YA market that feature material of interest to male readers. Lipsyte mentions multiple times that the current YA market focuses on young women and that most books “are bought by female editors, stocked by female librarians and taught by female teachers.” So is it really about the books or it more about the publishing industry currently being driven by females? The essay comments on the lack of quality books written specifically for boys, about boys, by boys.
To me and I think to many prospective readers, today’s books for boys — supernatural space-and-sword epics that read like video game manuals and sports novels with preachy moral messages — often seem like cynical appeals to the lowest common denominator. Boys prefer video games and ESPN to book versions of them. These knockoffs also lack the tough, edgy story lines that allow boys a private place to reflect on the inner fears of failure and humiliation they try so hard to brush over. Editors who ask writers of books for boys to include girl characters — for commercial reasons — further blunt the edges.
In response, Edgar nominated author Saundra Mitchell posted about the issue not being the lack of books but the lack of encouragement for boys to read .
I believe completely and entirely that we, as a society, need to start teaching our young men that books about girls are for boys too. But I also believe in putting books in hands, first and foremost. So I’d like to share a list of books featuring young men, many about the male experience, many written by men.
Do you know any good books for boys? Or is the YA market strictly a place for girls?
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