'You should be embarrassed when what you're reading was written for children'

'Read whatever you want. But you should be embarrassed when what you're reading was written for children' 

This quote is from this article, which goes on in a similar fashion. It is amongst a handful of other sources which discriminate against YA writing. After reading The Mile Long Bookshelf's post on this matter, I decided to also defend YA against such prejudice.

The Young Adult genre, or any children's genre, might be written for children, but that does not mean that only children can enjoy it. Anyone can read this genre, and it isn't right to say that adults should be embarrassed to read it. It is like saying that a person should be embarrassed for liking a particular food, or for liking certain music that most others might not like. Reading books written for children does not make the reader childish or stupid.

Most Young Adult books are actually written very intelligently. The authors of YA do not write in any different way to authors who write adult novels. They still address and embrace certain difficult issues, such as mental illness.

YA novels are geared towards children, yes, but that does not mean that adults should be embarrassed for reading them.

Your thoughts?

Do you have any thoughts on this? Comment or send me a guest post. I'm sure this is a good topic for discussion.