Young Adult literature YA is a burgeoning genre in the book world, with committed publishers and dedicated imprints, its own place in bookstores and libraries as well as on bookstagram, and with its own set of passionate readers and fans. YA literature is a focal point for discussions surrounding bibliodiversity and heterogeneity in and beyond the classroom. To acknowledge these trends in YA, and consider the opportunities for ELT through and with YA, we are merging our interests as researchers of English Language Education and Book Studies and coordinating this unique interdisciplinary symposium.
The limited depiction of people of colour in the media, along with their treatment in the creative and cultural industries, continues to be a critical issue in the UK.
In particular, there is a long history of women of colour being misrepresented and maligned in the media and cultural output, if they are portrayed at all Bryan et al, , Bailey, While the experiences and representations of women of colour in the media have changed over the decades, more recently, the nuanced, and intersectional, experiences of women of colour are often overlooked in the British media in favour of more reductive representations Sobande, However, Black and other women of colour are challenging these negative and stereotypical depictions through counternarratives in digital and alternative media.
This activism is slowly seeping into mainstream media. In the book publishing industry, for example, there is a growing impetus to publish authors of colour, and the establishment of inclusive imprints and publishing companies run by Black and other people of colour. In the YA sector, the focus of this paper, the number of authors of colour has increased incrementally since We have also seen an increase in YA authors of colours on the bestseller lists and being published by large conglomerate publishers Ramdarshan Bold, However, we are starting to see an influx of stories by and about people of colour, that depict a wider range of experiences and reject the white gaze.
This paper therefore explores the capacity of young adult fiction to challenge the perceptions of women of colour in British media and society through counterstorytelling. There are signs that the crisis is in retreat, but the future is uncertain. Reading for Normal worked with schools in England in — I will end by considering the possibilities for cultural exchange and further gains for adolescent wellbeing through establishing international reading group programmes.
