Young Adult and Canonical Literature

In the last decade alone, the world has changed in seismic ways as marriage equality has been ruled on by the supreme court, social justice issues such as #metoo and BlackLivesMatter have arisen, and issues of immigration and deportation have come to the forefront of politics across the globe. Thus, there is a need for an updated text that shares strategies for combining canonical and young adult literature that reflects the changes society has – and continues to - experience. The purpose of our collection is to offer secondary (6-12) teachers engaging ideas and approaches for pairing young adult and canonical novels to provide unique examinations of topics that teaching either text in isolation could not afford. Our collection does not center canonical texts and most chapters show how both texts complement each other rather than the young adult text being only an extension of the canonical. Within each volume, the chapters are organized chronologically according to the publication date of the canonical text. The pairings offered in this collection allow for comparisons in some cases, for extensions in others, and for critique in all.

“This book is an essential resource for English teachers who want to use BOTH young adult literature and canonical texts in their classrooms without sacrificing either. The world has changed dramatically since my last edition of Adolescent Literature as a Complement to the Classics was published in 1993 and Greathouse and Malo-Juvera provide a timely update that reflects current issues and features recently published young adult titles. Young Adult and Canonical Literature: Pairing and Teaching provides practical methods for teaching, in chapters written by the new vanguard of educators in the field of young adult literature. This is a must have book.”

Greathouse and Malo-Juvera provide ample evidence of the value of pairing YA literature with classic texts. From Pride and Prejudice to The Bluest Eye the authors of every chapter demonstrate how quality YA makes complex ideas and theories encased in the classics relevant to the modern audiences.

Secondary English teachers often struggle to infuse their classrooms with literature from the canon along with the proliferation of young adult texts that are often more relevant to their students. Not since Joan Kaywell's edited volume Adolescent Literature as a Complement to the Classics (1993), and her updates a decade later, has there been a definitive work combining these texts as complements to each other. This two-volume work offers unique options for teachers, with chapters organized chronologically by the publication date of the canonical text, providing a wide array of pairings with unique approaches to pedagogy within the strictures of the National Council of Teachers of English. Each chapter is organized with an introductory section; a summary of texts (without an emphasis on the canon); and instructional activities (with options) for before, during, and after the unit. Chapters also include extension activities and substantive lists of relevant references. This book will be valuable to veteran teachers who have at least some graduate work relating to further canon study and a broad understanding of relevant young adult texts. Highly recommended.

Paula Greathouse is associate professor of secondary English Education at Tennessee Tech where she teaches English methods, literacy, and young adult literature courses. She was a secondary English and Reading teacher for sixteen years.

Victor Malo-Juvera is a former middle school teacher and current associate professor of English Education at the University of North Carolina Wilmington where he teaches courses in young adult literature and multicultural young adult literature.

In the last decade alone, the world has changed in seismic ways as marriage equality has been ruled on by the supreme court, social justice issues such as #metoo and BlackLivesMatter have arisen, and issues of immigration and deportation have come to the forefront of politics across the globe. Thus, there is a need for an updated text that shares strategies for combining canonical and young adult literature that reflects the changes society has - and continues to - experience. The purpose of our collection is to offer secondary (6-12) teachers engaging ideas and approaches for pairing young adult and canonical novels to provide unique examinations of topics that teaching either text in isolation could not afford. Our collection does not center canonical texts and most chapters show how both texts complement each other rather than the young adult text being only an extension of the canonical. Within each volume, the chapters are organized chronologically according to the publication date of the canonical text. The pairings offered in this collection allow for comparisons in some cases, for extensions in others, and for critique in all.

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