*Note: This first appeared in the September 2012 issue of Off the Shelf.
Throughout our
childhoods we are spoon fed gallant ideas and romanticisms in the form of the
healing properties of love’s first kiss, love at first sight, soul mates and
the main stay of ‘…and they lived happily ever after.’ Those rose coloured ideals eventually make
way for the emotional muddle of crushes, attraction, lust, sexual identity and
sex, also known as the teen years.
If youth literature
properly reflect the teen experience, then contemporary romances are a
must. While they are often maligned,
dismissed and mocked, there are many titles on the shelves that would win the
most cynical reader over. Engaging
voices, strong perspectives, biting dialogue and a dash (and sometimes a
dousing) of romance shine a light on the smile inducing, knocked knees and
butterfly bellied stories of teens in love, lust and life.
World building is a
term that is used predominately in fantasy and dystopian storytelling but in
the case of new kid on the block, Stephanie Perkins, it also applies. Her debut novel, Anna and the French Kiss, depicts the aforementioned Anna as she negotiates
a new environment in the form of a Parisian boarding school. The boy in which she finds herself enamoured,
Etienne, is spoken for. Perkins chooses
to parallel the developing friendship between her two love birds alongside
Anna’s blossoming knowledge and appreciation for Paris .
While Etienne is the focus, he shares Anna’s heart alongside a
beautifully realised depiction of Paris and its people.
Perkins’s sophomoric
release, Lola and the Boy Next Door,
craftily uses San Francisco
landscape with all its brazenness, colour and stomach curdling curvature to
offset Lola’s unbalanced reality.
Juggling the reappearance of her mother and the childhood crush from
next door, Lola loves of colour and drama contrast with the more serious
decisions upon her. Perkins has created
an emotionally grounded world filled with a cast of distinct and well rounded
characters.
Paulo Coelho wrote
that “Love is just a word until someone comes along and gives it meaning.” Quality contemporary youth literature tackles
romance with serious thought, a light touch and emotional resonance. It starts with a moment of connection and
grows into something bigger, better and in some cases badder. The best of the bunch explore love and lust
but also the outward ripple effect on family and friends with specific
attention on the inner turmoil of the protagonist/s.
This is evident in
John Green’s recent offering, The Fault
in Our Stars, where the central concept is that of Hazel and the knowledge
that her cancer has won the battle.
Coping with depression and knowledge that the end is nigh, she meets
cancer survivor Augustus. What could
quite easily milk tears (and there are plenty of those) explores death and
romance through a slightly morbid and very quirky gaze that is distinctly
Green. It is a tale of true friendship,
the power of curiosity and the need for connection.
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| The boundaries (On The Jellicoe Road) |
Closer to home, the
romantic threads of Melina Marchetta’s body of work has tightened its grip on
young hearts and minds. Whether it is
the antagonistic, angst ridden interplay of Taylor and Jonah in On The Jellicoe Road, the foot stamping
passion of Will and Frankie in Saving
Francesca or the muddle that is the Josie, John and Jacob quandary in Looking for Alibrandi, Marchetta makes
it work. No one would claim that Marchetta’s
work is contemporary romance, the novels listed are all contemporary Australian
tales with rich characters that have romantic undertones. The best kind of romance sees its characters
and their journeys first and foremost before that of kissing.
Kirsty Eagar's debut Raw Blue is by no means labelled as a
romance and yet the friendship between Carly and Ryan slowly evolves by
increments until they find themselves ready for it. There are no triangles or instant love
connections here, romance is someone earned – a facet all readers appreciate.
Sarah Dessen is the
undisputed queen of the teen romance with her popular blend of problematic
family life with that of an intriguing romantic coupling. What can seem simple actually disguises firm
character arcs for all her protagonists whether they are struggling with eating
disorders, domestic abuse, grief, family separation or desertion. Dessen has a way of making her novels feel
lived in and safe, the boys always challenge the leads but never overwhelm
them.
Romance, good romance,
derives itself from quality character work.
A connection needs to be earned, built upon something other than
attraction, snappy dialogue, charged moments or a glimpse of danger, all work
to create a sense of wonder. There are
many authors who explore teen love and romance in a wonderfully rich way from
Jennifer Echols, to David Levithan, Elizabeth Scott and Meg Cabot – the secret
is going out there and finding them!
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