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Young Adult Literature
aka: Young Adult

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Young Adult fiction (and, more rarely, nonfiction) is a publishing term for books aimed at readers approximately 15 to 25 years old (though some authorities put the upper range at closer to 34). It uses a slightly simpler vocabulary and does not assume certain experiences on the part of the reader. Currently, Young Adult is mostly a marketing concept and thus YA novels are well represented in both literary and genre fiction. Generally, YA fiction features a child or teenage protagonist (although not always), usually in a Coming of Age Story. A common staple of YA fiction is the "problem novel", in which some sort of societal issue (such as sexuality, mental illness, poverty, racism, etc.) is discussed. Since all of this is also likely to appeal to adults, it is often separately marketed to both demographics. Young Adult fiction can feature content deemed unsuitable for children, but also will often have didactic and moralistic content.

The rough television equivalent is the Teen Drama (or Kid Com, though depending on the network usually aimed at a younger age group). The rough manga and anime equivalents are Shonen and Shoujo. The term "Young Adult" however has begun to be used widely as an umbrella term.

Due to a general misunderstanding of the term, and the fact that many of its target demographic are actually over the age of 18, nearly every venue in which Young Adult (or its synonym) storytelling occurs is subject to some degree of What Do You Mean, It's Not for Kids?, especially in works that are sexually explicit, very violent, or contain so-called "mature" subject matter that parents may feel is inappropriate for kids or teenagers. This is one reason why YA novels regularly face censorship and banning challenges.

Also see Middle Grade Literature and Children's Literature, for the next age groups down.

While Light Novels are directed at young adult audiences too, they are on their own index for convenience.

For the 2011 movie, see Young Adult.

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Parodies:

Alternative Title(s): Young Adult

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