Sunday, June 8, 2014

One Liners

Right now I'm reading John Green's, An Abundance of Katherine, and it's going pretty well.  It's been a little slow simple because I'm working on biology research this summer and after working my mind all day I just want to fall asleep.  I'm nearly finished so I will probably review it once it's done but what I really wanted to talk about was the pleasure I get from finding the single poetic lines or phrases in novels.

I read mostly YA fiction and to be completely realistic the genre is not always filled with the same literary beauty that can be found in the classics.  I have no problem with this fact.  If I did I would be reading more adult literature or plunging my way through the classics. (Something that I want to do but can't manage this summer).  Every now and then though we are surprised by little bits of literary magic in the pages of these YA books.

I love finding these lines.  They make me exceedingly happy and catch my attention because they add a touch of texture to the language.  John Green's books are fun because they are filled with these little bits.  You only have to open any page of A Fault in Our Stars to find these gems and a few of these lines have crept up on me in An Abundance of Katherines.

These little pieces of poetry are one of the ways that YA literature redeems itself in front of all those that claim it's lacking in depth or sophistication.  These lines are important in expanding the reader's ability to understand her world.  These lines of poetic prose increases the vocabulary of a reader who is living in a world where vocabulary is become less important.

I'm probably being an overexcited English major but language is so important to me and finding pieces of language that I love makes my day.