January 26, 2012

TQOTD - Sometimes Y.A. Annoys Me Because....



So I'm reading this Young Adult novel right now, and it's not so bad. It's your typical paranormal werewolf teenage drama read. But the one thing that's been bugging me is how the parents of our main characters never seem to...well...parent! LOL. Somehow the teenagers always get away with slamming doors, sneaking out of the house, or disappearing for days at a time without the parents ever noticing. What's up with that??

So this Thursday's Question of the Day: What's something that happens in Y.A. novels that always seems to annoy you?

LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS??

13 comments:

  1. I get annoyed that the men are portrayed as possessive, insanely jealous, and controlling and the girls complain a bit but in the end just deal with it because they're in love.

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  2. Maria, that series wouldn't happen to be Courtney Moulton's series is it? Because that was the one thing that ruined that series for me. She would do things and her parents would shrug it off.

    There are a couple of things I've noticed in YA lately that irk me and it's in almost every book...

    Love Triangles and the whole we can't be, on and off relationships.

    I feel like since it worked for Twilight, now all authors are doing it and I hate it! Don't get me wrong, I can deal with certain love triangles, but it seriously has to be written a certain way for me to like it.

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    1. Oh and I just realized you said werewolf, so def. not Courtney Moulton's series lol.

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  3. This is so true. I love YA so much, but when will be parents ever be portrayed as how they should be?

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  4. Probably two things: the insta-love/completely unrealistic portrayal of relationships is a big one. In fact, one of the most popular YA series (if not THE most popular) is the worst offender in this area. The relationship between the two MCs is one of the unhealthiest I've ever read but people find it incredibly romantic, which makes me want to scream.

    Also, it seems like 95% of the time protagonists are breathtakingly beautiful. It's gotten to the point where any time I come across a book with an average looking hero/heroine I'm tempted to tack on an extra star rating just for that.

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    1. Yes, I think the insta-love thing is also annoying me.

      One book that I am in love with and it's because it wasn't insta-love and you actually get to know the characters is Under The Never Sky. There was no attraction one bit between the two and as the story kept going, you watched how they fell in love.

      Same with Divergent by Veronica Roth & Touch of Power by Maria V. Snyder. I think that plays a big part why I loved those books so much!

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  5. As a mom I get annoyed by this too. I want to see parents activelly parent their kids. I have noticed it mainly with paranormal books too.
    I thought Fracture was one of the better story with parents and good child with good grades. I loved it for that reason.

    Not all homes are broken. Another one is also the insta love. Just a mom to 5 kids

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    1. I loved Fracture and I have to agree with you. Her parents in Fracture were very involved in her life.

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  6. Love triangles. And "bad boys" that are super controlling and push around the protagonist. No thank you.

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  7. Love triangles, controlling relationships, talks of marriage and/or pregnancy, absent parents, insta-love, middle-book-filler-syndrome, painfully average main character that every guy who walks the Earth wants a piece of--and on the flip side, characters that are flawless both in personality and their looks.

    I have a lot of annoyances with YA, so much that people ask why I still read it. But, despite all this, I do still love it. Lol.

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  8. Hmm...I am trying to recall when I last read a book that had parents not being parents. I'm really struggling! In most of the book I'm reading, the MC is orphaned...living at a boarding school...or, they actually have parents who do parent like things. I don't know if un-parent like parents would really bother me. I mean, if the story doesn't actually revolve around the relationship between the MC and his/her characters, I'm able to suspend the disbelief that the parents don't give a crap. I think in my head I kind of equate it to the lack of showering/eating/etc. in books. I mean, I know characters do those sorts of things, but it's not relevant to the story to show those scenes. Although, from what it seems, I haven't read too many books with parents like you're describing. If I read enough of them, it might start bothering me.

    The things that bother me? Love triangles. Mostly because I usually dislike both love interests. I also dislike insta-love. It just doesn't happen! And I have a harder time believing in those things than most others. I think J.K. Rowling did it right. I mean, it took Ron and Hermione how long to get with the program? I'm also tired of stoic, possessive love interests. And I find it disturbing that so many people fawn over these people, wishing they would sweep them off their feet.

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  9. Good point about the none existent or ineffectual parent types. I also find indecisive girls in love triangles extremely annoying. I see that others mentioned this too.
    Teen angst is not my cup of tea either.

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  10. The 'not there' parent types really annoy me. Love triangles also - of any kind.

    Another thing I really don't like is when "hot" or "really good looking" is applied to a list of character definitions. Like when someone says 'He was smart and funny and drop dead gorgeous, why wouldn't I go out with him?" - they should have stopped at smart and funny. Listing physical characteristics as a reason for dating or liking someone leads me to think this character will do something stupid later in the book but we'll all forgive him because of his unbelievable, unavoidable, he could do no wrong hotness.

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