Joni Richards Bodart is assistant professor in the School of
Library and Information Science at San Jose State University. She
is the author of The World's Best Thin Books: What to Read When
Your Book Report is Due Tomorrow (Scarecrow, 2000), Radical Reads:
101 YA Novels on the Edge (Scarecrow, 2002), and Radical Reads 2:
Working with the Newest Edgy Titles for Teens (Scarecrow,
2010).
This consideration of the rise of paranormal young adult fiction
focuses on popular contemporary titles lightly contextualized in a
historical frame. Bodart prefaces her discussion with commentary on
the “culture of fear” surrounding today’s young adults, and how the
perceived increased dangers in their lives make supernatural
monsters a vicarious way to deal with them. The book is divided
into four sections: “Vampires: The Aristocratic Monster”;
“Shapeshifters: The Transforming Monster”; “Zombies: The
Reanimated, Resurrected Monster; and “Angels, Unicorns, Demons: The
Unexpectedly Deadly Monsters.” Each section opens with an overview
of the literary and, when applicable, folkloric history of each
supernatural being. Plot summaries of four popular contemporary
offerings (single titles and series) follow, such as the Cynthia
Leitich Smith’s “Tantalize” series (vampires) (Candlewick), Annette
Curtis Klause’s Blood and Chocolate (shapeshifters) (Delacorte,
1997), A.J. Whitten’s The Cellar (zombies) (Houghton, 2011), and
Diana Peterfreund’s “Rampant” series (unicorns) (HarperCollins).
Excerpts from author interviews, including book-and-author related
online resources, enrich the accessible text. Effort is made to
connect the nature of the particular monster being discussed to the
developmental stages of young adults, as well as to occurrences
such as the terrorist attack of September 11, 2001. . . . Bodart
uses sources such as pop-culture icon Stephen King, developmental
authorities Piaget and Erikson, and professional LIS journal
articles to expand her discussion and inform her conclusions. This
is an informative look at a popular publishing phenomenon. An
appendix lists recent paranormal series titles (stand-alone,
continuing, complete, and unknown) and provides a solid core for
collections of this particular genre.
*School Library Journal*
Depending on your viewpoint, the recent explosion of paranormal
entities in YA fiction has either been a bane or boon. Regardless,
librarians ask the same question posited by Bodart in this book’s
introduction: “Why does a literary form that revels in rot and ruin
appeal to teen readers?” And what are the cultural coals fueling
this most recent fire? Bodart divides her investigation into four
categories: vampires, shape-shifters, zombies, and “The
Unexpectedly Deadly” monsters of angels, unicorns, and demons. Her
opening remarks, reminiscent of Stephen King’s Danse Macabre
(1981), are enlightening, swift studies in each subgenre’s history,
growth, tropes, and major works. Chapters focusing on individual
authors follow, from Melissa de la Cruz’s Blue Blood series to
Charlie Higson’s The Enemy. Criticism is mostly absent. Rather, the
chapters serve both as a tour through each invented universe and as
a study of the author’s relationship to the books, drawn mostly
through existing interviews. The fact that few of these series are
actually scary is often sidestepped, but this entry in the
Scarecrow Studies in Young Adult Literature series is nonetheless
an ideal window through which librarians and readers can view the
current landscape—and choose what to read next.
*Booklist*
Bodart’s summation of scary stuff in young adult reading cuts to
the heart of Gothicism. Her introduction, a gem of a lecture on
otherness, connects the dots between the literary no man’s land and
the unstable, unknowable path between the teen age and adulthood.
Her bibliographies present classic and recent sources from Maurice
Sendak to Anne Rice and Stephen King. . . . This is a worthy book
for the public and school library and for psychology and young
adult education shelves of teacher’s colleges.
*American Reference Books Annual*
Like a vampire to blood, it is hard to resist a book with a title
like this one. Why does it seem that every young adult fiction
author is suddenly writing about supernatural monsters like
werewolves, zombies and vampires? Are these books popular now
because of the economic downturn? Or is the popularity due to a
need of young adults to learn about monsters and demons, what they
are, why they are dangerous and how to overcome their threats
within the safe, controlled confines of a story? Do young adults
live in a reality between an adult’s and a child’s world, like the
fictitious monsters in these books? These are the questions Joni
Richards Bodart addresses in this scholarly analysis of the
‘monster’ phenomenon in young adult fiction. Dr Bodart is well
placed to write on this topic. She holds degrees in psychology as
well as a doctorate in librarianship. In addition Bodart is an
expert in young adult literature, having written around 20 books on
the subject. Despite the scholarly tone of this work, she writes in
a very readable and enjoyable way, which tempts readers to seek out
for themselves many of the books she discusses.This book is not
only a fascinating scholarly account of the reasons for the current
proliferation of zombies and vampires in young adult fiction, but
it is also a useful guide for librarians interested in current
series of fantasy and horror books for these readers. The book
lists horror/fantasy series and individual titles by sub-genre,
such as vampires, shapeshifters, zombies and demons, as well as
giving historical context to the current phenomenon. There is a US
bias in the selection of titles, but, that aside, it is still an
excellent selection guide. As a mother of three young adults as
well as a librarian, I thoroughly recommend this book both for its
insight into the world of supernatural fiction and for its use as a
guide to what is available in the horror/fantasy genre for young
adults. This book is a worthwhile guide to enjoying the ‘darkness
in all of us’ in a good story.
*Australian Library Journal*
They Suck, They Bite, They Eat, They Kill: The Psychological
Meaning of Supernatural Monsters in Young Adult Fiction is
essentially a monster mash documenting books that appeal to an
American teenage readership. Bodart focuses on six different
monsters - vampires, shape-shifters, killer unicorns, zombies, evil
angels and demons. Each of Bodart's four main sections cover the
particular topic followed by an examination of specific subject
books, such as Melissa de la Cruz's Blue Bloods and Charlie
Higson's The Enemy series. . . . They Suck, They Bite, They Eat,
They Kill is clearly intended for public and school libraries and
teenage readers.
*The Age*
It is useful as a reference work about some current Young Adult
horror fiction. I found Bodart’s book to be well organized and
designed for readers to skim and take from it what they needed. . .
Bodart’s selection of books to analyze is useful for someone who
wants to gain a better understanding of the breadth of the subgenre
or perhaps get a detailed description of a book or series that
cannot be gleaned from the Internet.
*Dead Reckonings: A Review Magazine for the Horror Field*
They Suck, They Bite, They Eat, They Kill: The Psychological
Meaning of Supernatural Monsters in Young Adult
Fiction divides up monsters into four categories: vampires,
shapeshifters, zombies, and others (angels, unicorns and
demons). After a brief introduction of the monster,
Bodart discusses several popular monster books. She explores the
characters, their worlds, and their significance. Teens are
attracted to these stories because the characters are often
learning to fit into a world where they are not quite adults but no
longer children. These characters are also growing up and finding
their place in the world. . . . It is a highly fascinating and
informative read for teen librarians.
*VOYA*
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