How far is TOO FAR for violence in YA novels???
The Hunger Games is one of my absolute favs of all time. I personally think the violence can teach teens of the dangers that exist in our world. But some think it's just too much. (they are wrong, sorry!)
There's alot of violence in YA books today, and I'm not afraid to admit I LOVE IT. (is that weird?) 
So what do you think? How far is too far? Would you like to see more? Less? What are some of your favorite YA books that have a lot of violence?
The Hunger Games is one of my favorite series, too. And yeah, there's a lot of violence, but it's obviously not glorifying it or anything like that. I think the line is crossed when violence is shown as a purely good thing. I guess it can help achieve good things, but there's a lot of negative consequences to it, too.
ReplyDeletethat's a really good point, i totally agree!
ReplyDeleteI am not put off by the violence aspect.
ReplyDeleteI really see no reason to censor the violence in a book if it is adding to the overall story being told. I can remember reading Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi and there were some pretty graphic scenes there, and people talking about strangling other people with their guts if they don't do what they say, but I mean, c'mon, it was a bunch of dystopian pirates talking, so it makes sense, right? I think if anything, not censoring yourself makes the story all that more real and believable!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the insightful post :)
I agree. being a total Hunger Games devotee, and a YA writer, as long as the violence is on track with the story and is not grutarious and for shock value, I have no problem with it. Also it is up to parents to really be in touch with what their kids are reading. Just like TV watching. My eleven year old is not ready to read the Hunger Games, but he loved Harry Potter, and book seven was a little more violent than the others. It comes down to knowing your kids and what they are reading/watching. Violence without a story I have a problem with, such as slasher films. But violence within the context of books like The Hunger Games or The Ship Breaker is there to teach a lesson.
ReplyDeleteI always wonder about this myself, yet I read violent books when I was younger. I liked The Hunger Games and the Harry Potter books a lot, but I agree with Becca, you need to know your own kids and what they can handle.
ReplyDeleteWhen the violence stops having any meaning. (Unless, of course, that's what you were going for :)
ReplyDeleteAs an adult, I dont think any of it is too much but when you are trying to recommend a book to a teen, violence never seems to be the problem. parents tend to not mind the violence so much, they ask, does it have sexual content. for example the house of night series is not one I recommend to younger teens and sometimes Breaking dawn. It all just depends on how strict the parents are.
ReplyDeleteViolence doesn't bother me much in YA. I don't like it actually when authors say there's a fight and don't explain what happens- I want to feel that adrenaline! However, there must be a reason and I don't want a "good" MC randomly beating up people. I'm a teen and in a video game there's probably more violence than in any book I've read.
ReplyDeleteHi, I don't mind the violence as much as I do the sexual aspects of alot of YA books. I have gotten to where I read alot of the YA books before I allow my daughters to read them. I think that some is good BUT alot of books cross the line between YA and Adult fiction. I wish there were another "catagory" that bridge the 2 genres. This was a good topic :)
ReplyDelete-Brandy
brandyzbooks@yahoo.com
I am the daughter of an officer in the Air Force. I was raised reading Lord of the Rings, watching the movies, hearing my dad (whose major was history) tell me about great wars, the leaders, the strategy ect.
ReplyDeleteI have always been drawn to books with fight scenes and blood. I am a woman writing a book about war scenes, blood and the emotional trauma of fighting a loosing battle, both physically and psychologically.
I have no problem with violence in YA. I think if you are reading an epic fantasy novel good vs. evil warfare is necessary and appealing.
If you are reading a modern story about bullying, violence is a factual, believable, and can become an educational part of a book such as in Hate List by Jennifer Brown.
Blood runs in your veins, it doesn't bother me if a little is spilled in between the pages of a good story.
I absolutely LOVE The Hunger Games series too! Its actually quite funny because when I first read The Hunger Games I hardly even noticed the violence. Okay let me rephrase that. I felt like it was violent but not noticeably in my face disgusting you know what I mean? I guess because I'm not watching it it doesn't feel as violent to me? I don't know. I think it gets to far if the author starts describing the violence in full detail. Like The Monstrumologist. Then its just flat out GROSS. :P
ReplyDeleteI finally bought my copy of Hunger Games but I haven't read it yet, so I can't judge the violence yet. I did read Collins's previous series for middle graders which was also quite violent (read it with my middle grader). The violence didn't bother him- I think he understood the point of it. As long as it's not gratuitous and the consequences are realistic, I think it serves a purpose.
ReplyDeleteI love the Hunger Games. I think they show how violence is wrong and it shouldn't be used for entertainment.
ReplyDeleteFollowing you from the blog hop, follow me back
http://fuegitabonita.blogspot.com
everyone seems to think pretty much the same thing about this! i'm so pleased to hear that parents (and teens) can actually find violence educational...and totally awesome. =]
ReplyDelete