Critical Merits of Young Adult Literature

Crag Hill is Assistant Professor of English Education at the University of Oklahoma, USA.

• Foreword: Coming of Age with Young Adult Literature through Critical Analysis, Steve BickmorePrefaceAcknowledgmentsChapter One: Introduction: Young Adult Literature and Scholarship Come of Age, Crag HillChapter Two: More Than a ‘Time of Storm and Stress’: The Complex Depiction of Adolescent Identity in Contemporary Young Adult Novels, Janet AlsupChapter Three: Sexuality as Risk and Resistance in Young Adult Literature, Mark Lewis & Sybil DurandChapter Four: Hungry Like the Wolf: Gender Non-conformity in YAL, sj Miller Chapter Five: 'The Worst Form of Violence': Unpacking Portrayals of Poverty in Young Adult Novels, Janine Darragh & Crag HillChapter Six: ‘I was carrying the burden of my race’: Reading Matters of Race and Hope in YA Literature by Walter Dean Myers and Sherman Alexie, KaaVonia Hinton & Rodrigo Joseph RodriguezChapter Seven: Creating an Eco-warrior: Wilderness and Identity in the Dystopian World of Scott Westerfeld’s Uglies Series, Christopher ArigoChapter Eight: The Emigrant, Immigrant and Trafficked Experiences of Adolescents: Young Adult Literature as Window and Mirror, Linda T. Parsons & Angela RietschlinChapter Nine: Annotated Bibliography, Laura PowersEnd Points: Crag HillList of Contributors

"…. Addressing themes and literary devices central to the success of the best YA literature, the collected essays easily show why such works are popular with teens and worthy of rigorous examination. … It is the meticulously researched analyses in the chapters that follow that readers will truly appreciate. Hill carefully chose essays that examine the theoretical foundations of young adult literature and that will foster meaningful discussion in the classroom about the legitimacy of the texts. … this volume is powerful ammunition for a battle that should have been won long ago. Summing Up: Essential. All readers." - D.C. Greenwood, Albright College, in CHOICE, November 2014 "…. a welcome addition to the expanding knowledge base that is growing as young adult literature is indeed coming of age." - Judith A. Hayn, University of Arkansas at Little Rock, USA"…. a landmark work that demonstrates that YA literature is worthy of serious literary criticism, that it is, indeed, literature. The authors in this collection do not shy away from complex readings; instead they forge new ground. Each chapter serves as a model and a theoretical foundation for other scholars to stand on as the field of YA literature moves forward." - Steven T. Bickmore, Co-Editor of The ALAN Review, From the Foreword