Impact

I chose a different kind of genre when I was in secondary school. No more Enid Blyton's stories but a more adult like books. I can't really remember any books that have had an impact on me as a teenager. Sometimes I read whatever boks that are available in my school library. I remembered that I prefer to read mystery detective stories like Hardy Boys series and Nancy Drew series. Can they be considered as young adult literature? But I think some of the themes discussed in those series are related to teenagers. The only thing is that those series concentrated more on the sleuthing and not much on conflicts. They were considered easy reading.
I guess I didn't have much problems growing up. Despite having internal conflicts within myself, I got through them. Some kind of escapism for me would be reading romance novels either modern or historical. Maybe the impact that I had after reading all books would be my love for the English language grew stronger. I think my English got better because I read the books especially the romance novels because they use a lot descriptive words. The bokks I have read ranged from teenage romance novels to adult ones. Maybe some titles were not appropriate but I was reading them because I appreciate how they were written. Reading too much 'mushy' things has made me a romantic.

Enid Blyton

An author that I particularly enjoy would be Enid Blyton. I really love reading the books which were written by her. I practically grew up reading her books whether they were magical tales or about schooling or mystery stories. Titles like 'The Wishing Chair', 'Malory Towers' series, 'Famous Five' and 'Secret Seven' made me a reader. I would read the books anywhere either at the library or at home. I enjoyed all the books written by her because they me feel like one of the characters in he books. I imagined myself to experience the experience of the characters. I wanted to experience life at a boarding school, I wanted to travel the world with my wishing chair; going to all sorts of places, I wanted to be a private investigator and the list goes on. Whatever books as long as they have Enid Blyton's name I would read them. But of course I have forgotten some of the titles. I can't even remember if I still keep the books. It has been a very long time since I last read an Enid Blyton book.
What appeals to me of the books and the author is that the books have colourful covers and the publishers keep changing them. Either they are in cartoon form or real life photos. The author's writing really captured my imagination. The use of simple and creative words made her books very reader friendly. That's why I practically love reading her books because at that moment of time her stories were relevant to me.

What is Young Adul Literature?

Dear journal,
I was introduced to young adult literature by my lecturer, Dr Edwin. It was a very interesting class because I learnt literature when I did my degree but none were on young adult literature. So the term was quite new to me. I studied James Joyce's "Potrait of A Young Artist" but in Brown's book that novel comes under apprenticeship novels category. Unfortunately I have forgotten what that novel was about. If I were to read it again the things I've learnt in class might resurface. So I don't think I have truly read literature books related with young adults. I may have encountered some titles but I can't remember them.
Anyway in my opinion young adult literature would involve young adults as the main characters. The problems that they encounter in life while growing up might be a crucial thing in the plot of young adult literature. It is a journey into adulthood. It is where young adults learn about life. There are so many negative things talked about as young adults are equal to rebellious beings. It is good that young adult literature has been recognised as a genre and I guess teenagers would relate better to life for there are written materials that express their positivity and negativity in life.
I think I am eager to try to read young adult literature books after this so that I can share the experience with my students about the things that are discussed in the books.