I personally believe that it is the purpose of the library to carry books of all kinds regardless if some people think that they pointless. The idea that the genres of young adult (YA), new adult (NA), and graphic novels are not being read by adults is laughable. The second in charge at the library I currently work at only reads manga, Japanese graphic novels, and I myself read a fair amount of YA because I can just shut my brain off while reading them. These genres are just as important as the more traditional genres.
Speaking from the experience as an adult who likes to read YA and NA from time to time I love them because of their simplicity. I love to read a dense fantasy novel or a heady science fiction epic, but sometimes I want to read something that I know will have a simple plot with likeable characters where the good guy always prevails. For the teen reader they serve as a place of transition. The teen has outgrown Diary of a Wimpy Kid and wants something a little more stimulating. It is good to have a place where that teen can get books that both challenge them without scaring them off. If you gave a fifteen year old the first Wheel of Time book with its slow pace and almost 800 pages they might never read again. It is good to have a place in the library where adults can go to seek out a more simple story and teens can seek out a place for them between children's and adult fiction.
For graphic novels I feel as though the conversation is different. Here in the West we tend to see things like graphic novels to be inherently childish. The fact that the books have pictures makes them seem lesser to these people, but I would argue that the best graphic novels use the pictures to only enhance the words. I am currently reading the manga series, Delicious in Dungeon by Ryoko Kui. A coworker and I kept hearing about it on social media, so we are both currently reading it. The story of this series revolves around cooking. Each chapter features a dish being prepared and the artwork really captures the food in a way that words cannot. In a different vain one of my favorite graphic novels, Uzumaki by Junji Ito, is a horror manga about a town in Japan being haunted by spirals. The story takes so wild a bizarre turns but the art is really what brings it home. The book deals with a fair amount of body horror and it is so much more horrifying to see it drawn out rather than just being words on a page.
I personally think that the best first step that we can do to promote this books to the library users is to put out displays. There could be a display of YA/NA books that have appeal to adults or a display of some of the best graphic novels that are in the library. I personally think that the best thing that you can do to convince someone of these genres right to be promoted is to be exposed to them. Most of the critique towards these genres is from people who are coming into them with preconceived notions of what they expect of "literature." We should work to introduce readers to their next favorite thing.
I definitely agree with you on all fronts. I personally love reading the manga for the anime series I have watched, especially one's that have major breaks between seasons or those that don't get renewed. I spend a good portion of my day covering the new manga arriving at my library, and I thoroughly enjoy making the wishlist of series I would like to see on the shelves as well as glancing at the artwork while I have my hands on them.
ReplyDeleteMy focal point at my job is non-fiction, so I never really paid attention to whether or not it was deemed acceptable for patrons to read YA or graphic novels. I know plenty of adults who've ready YA so this never even occurred to me as being an issue. I am intrigued by the manga series you mentioned, Delicious in Dungeon. Are there actual recipes included? Or is it geared more towards the learning experience of making the dish and its history?
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