YA Novels With A Purpose

Written by Avery Hellberg | Designed by MC Hopper | Photographed by Sophia Kysela

Why We Need Better Representation in Literature

What would you define as good representation? Now, where do you think good representation is most important? Film? Television? Books?

The answer is all of the above, but the world has been talking about good representation in film and television a lot lately, so it’s time to put a little more focus on representation in literature.

Arguably, where representation is most important is in Children’s and Young Adult literature. The great classics of children’s literature—the Charlotte Webs, and Goodnight Moons—have withstood the test of time, having been passed down from generation to generation. But, like many other classics, they only include predominantly white characters.

When you are a kid, you want to be able to open a book and see a superhero or a princess that looks like you. When children of color are constantly reading about white characters, their perception of someone who can save the world or rule over a kingdom is distorted.

Research from the Cooperative Children’s Book Center showed that according to 2019 statistics, in children’s books, 11.9% of main characters are Black/African, 1% are Native/First Natwions, 5.3% are Latinx, 8.7% are Asian/Asian American, 0.05% are Pacific Islander, 41.8% are white, and 29.2% are animal/other. This doesn’t take into account how many of those characters were written by people of the same race.

The importance of diverse characters extends past children seeing themselves as superheroes or princesses. Cultural differences are often not taken into account when these stories are written.

More often than not, a white child and a child of color are going to have drastically different cultural experiences even if they live in the same country, live in the same state, or even attend the same school. Furthermore, an Asian child is not going to feel represented if a book is marketed as racially diverse and the diversity comes in the form of a Black character.

This goes the other way around as well. The way that many of us connect to characters is through shared experiences. It makes the reading experience that much more enjoyable if we can see part of ourselves in our favorite characters. Even in works of fiction, we understand characters as extensions and reflections of real people.

The way that POC, specifically Black people, are villainized in mass media creates false stereotypes for people who are not exposed to racial diversity in their everyday lives.

Nancy Wang Yuen, author of “Reel Inequality: Hollywood Actors and Racism,” told Forbes, “Studies show that audiences substitute stereotypes they see on screen for reality when they have not had any direct interactions with particular racial groups.” We consume hours and hours of media every single day. Our very perceptions of the world are shaped by the media. When the media doesn’t accurately portray POC or fails to portray them at all, the lives of POC are put at risk.

Another important aspect of this problem is how these characters are being represented. If a character of color is included in a story, the chance of them being the main character is slim to none. Characters like the funny Black best friend/sidekick to the main white character are not sufficient forms of representation.

Along with this, if a story does focus around a person of color, it is a story of sadness and pain. The Hate You Give is often cited as a YA novel with good representation. While I agree with this and loved the book, it focuses on the effects of police brutality on the Black community.

These stories are essential to share, but people of color shouldn’t constantly be subjected to reading stories that solely highlight the pain they endure. We are in need of more romantic comedies with POC leads that simply go through the trials and tribulations of asking their crush out on a date. We need more fantasy novels where POC main characters are forced to go on a journey to slay the dragon and leave victorious.

Representation is nothing without well thoughtout characters and meaningful storylines.

Although they are still far and few between, there are still some books that achieve a high level of thoughtful representation.

Luster, one of my favorite mid-20s complex female coming of age stories, follows Edie, who is simply trying to figure out who she is. Readers get an insight into the realities of being a young Black woman in America laced with Edie’s sharp and pointed outlooks on life.

The Wrath and the Dawn is a modern-day Arabian Nights retelling filled with scandal, lust, tension, but most importantly, an incredibly rich and diverse cast of enticing characters. The eighteen year-old king Khalid weds a new wife every night, but by dawn, he has her executed. Shahrzad, determined to be the first wife to see the light of day, volunteers to be Khalid’s next wife with no intention of falling in love.

For the hopeless romantics, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe is a touching novel following two love-sick Mexican American high school students navigating a world where they struggle for being both Mexican and gay.

The dangers of inaccurate representation of POC further dangerous stereotypes that create inequalities and unsafe spaces for POC. In order for people of color to feel seen in the stories they are reading, we need to make a conscious effort to change the way characters are written and uplift the stories and voices of those who have been silenced for too long.