Dystopia? But the girls are stronger!!!

I 100% should not be blogging right now as I have piles of work all around me. But, alas, here I am. I wanted to check-in on the amazing Louise and see what was new. Then I edited all the spelling errors in my last blog (oops). But then I think I edited too much because it seems to have disapeared (double oops). So instead of getting back to work, I thought I would fill the void. So here goes:

I spent a good deal of time in the car today, traveling around to different meetings. And while in the car I spent a lot of time analyzing what has shifted in my head from "my latest guilty pleasure," to, "I deal with serious stuff all day-- I deserve this," to, finally, "hell, I just really love it and I don't care if no one else gets it."

I spent a serious amount of time contemplating and then validating my current fascination: teen lit.

*Seriously* It is all I am reading.

I put down the book that recently won the Pulitzer Prize because my box from Amazon came and I immediately had to dive into a new book-- also emblazoned with a shiny gold seal on it (Looking for Alaska). Of course this seal says the "Michael Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature." (That is of course a huge award from the American Library Association.) I guess Oscar Wao's Brief and Wondrous Life will be finding some longevity on my bookshelf.

I tore through that book in less than 48 hours, as is the rule for reading teen lit. (That's the rule not because one can't spend time with these books, rather, it's because they are so absolutely terrific that it is nearly impossible to put them down.) And then I proceeded to work through the next one in my box (Before I Fall). Also good, but not great, and therefore took me closer to 72 hours to finish.

I digress. All of this is besides the point for this blog. Here are my sub-points, in somewhat of a random order:

1. I can't believe I missed out on this stuff. Always a big reader, I went straight from the older kid books (Babysitters Club, Nancy Drew, Saddle Club Series), straight into classics and the kind of good literature I read now (like the poor, neglected, but wondrous, Oscar Wao). I admit, I took a small break in between and delved into some Sweet Valley High and some horrid murder-type mysteries. But that time was short-lived and I moved on quickly to the good, adult stuff.

2. When did teen lit get so serious? All of these books are about death, grief, rape, the end of the world, suicide, abuse, neglect and war (examples: I Am the Messenger, After You'd Gone, The Vanishing Act and just about every other book I mention). The characters are constantly facing these huge moral dilemmas. And in the end, the reader understands what the consequences of the various choices might have been. Luckily, the characters tend to choose wisely, with heart and wisdom beyond their years. I think that these types of situations-- the normal girl or boy-- facing their worst fears and the most horrific situations one could imagine-- could make for very powerful and emotionally engaging reading as an adolescent (or as a 31 year old-- whatever).

3. And is it me, or have times changed? Characters in these books act older than their ages, sometimes by choice but often times out of necessity. They are survivors. These books aren't about who so-and-so is going to take to prom. No, these books examine what it's like to care for your family when your town is blown up in war (The Book Thief) or what it's like to die and learn what happens after death (Elsewhere).

But, the whole point of this blog and it's relevancy to the discussions about Seneca Falls, is to discuss one common thread in 4 incredible books (The Hunger Games trilogy and Graceling): Near-gender equality if not near-neutrality.

The Hunger Games trilogy (and three of the most fascinating books I have read in some time) are set in a complete and total dystopia. Everything completely sucks there. Completely. Except for one thing-- in that particular dystopian world where survival is dependent on strength, will and intelligence, the girls are in no way weaker then the boys. 15 year-old Katniss, the lead protagonist, is just about the strongest character I have gotten to know in recent memory. When she is failing, it's not because of her strength, will or intelligence. Usually it's because her emotions are confusing and she needs to grab her bow and arrow and go hunting to sort through what's happening. Stepping back, one could say she reacts to challenges like many stereotypical male characters do-- with emotional distance. But the author does not fuss over this. She does not fuss over gender roles at all. In fact, when Katniss is "captured" for lack of a better word and is to be cleaned up for TV, she's irate that the crew dare wax her legs, pluck her eyebrows, comb her hair and clean her nails. She is forced to become unnatural, and she can't stand it. And then the reader learns that they do the same rituals to the captured male characters. No different treatment for either of them.

Graceling is similar, although it's more of a fantasy book, taking place in a locale similar to Tolken's Middle Earth. The main character, a young girl, is the deadliest person on earth, and she's incredibly smart, strong, willful and wise. And in both, the very existence of their worlds become dependent on them, and nearly them alone.

Dystopia is bad. This I know. But imagining a future where the concept of gender-identity is so hugely mitigated is rather Utopian.

But for now, spending hours living in a world of pages where gender-identity and limitations based upon such is hugely mitigated without even realizing the author has created that specifically until after the books have long been completed is a bit of Utopia for me every day.


Three cheers for teen lit. And three cheers for fabulous female characters.