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Gay Teens in YA Lit

This is worth the free sign-up process to hear on New Hampshire Public Radio: “Gay Teens in Literature” in which “James Murdock (Columbia University) visits some bookstores and libraries in New York City. He finds that some customers are noticing a change in how gay teens are portrayed in literature” (5:33). Murdock looks at the shift in teen fiction, from focusing on crisis of “being gay” to now “the private struggle of being gay to the public act of coming out.” Authors interviewed include Alex Sanchez, Julie Anne Peters, and David Levithan, as well as Linda Braun, who teaches Young Adult Literature at Simmons College in Boston and is President Elect – Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). Young adult readers are also interviewed, and their comments offer insight into their interest in reading about gay characters in fiction, from self-identification to a way to explore the lives of others and become more open to the diversity of our culture.

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