Are you Kristy or Claudia?! That was the question growing up in the 90s if you read ANY of the Baby Sitter's Club books. In the mid 80s and early 90s, Young Adult novels - like BSC and Sweet Valley High- took the book world by storm. Every kid my age was devouring them in some aspect.
When I first came across this title, I was intrigued. Anything that takes my back to simpler times is a win for me. Add in a detailed analysis of the genre, the topics and why they were so beloved? YES PLEASE!
From Goodreads:
Paperback Crush
Author: Gabrielle Moss
Release Date: October 30, 2018
Publisher: Quirk Books
Every twenty- or thirty-something woman knows these books. The pink covers, the flimsy paper, the zillion volumes in the series that kept you reading for your entire adolescence. Spurred by the commercial success of Sweet Valley High and The Babysitters Club, these were not the serious-issue YA novels of the 1970s, nor were they the blockbuster books of the Harry Potter and Twilight ilk. They were cheap, short, and utterly beloved.
PAPERBACK CRUSH dives in deep to this golden age with affection, history, and a little bit of snark. Readers will discover (and fondly remember) girl-centric series on everything from correspondence (Pen Pals and Dear Diary) to sports (The Pink Parrots, Cheerleaders, and The Gymnasts) to a newspaper at an all-girls Orthodox Jewish middle school (The B.Y. Times) to a literal teen angel (Teen Angels: Heaven Can Wait, where an enterprising guardian angel named Cisco has to earn her wings “by helping the world’s sexist rock star.”) Some were blatant ripoffs of the successful series (looking at you, Sleepover Friends and The Girls of Canby Hall), some were sick-lit tearjerkers à la Love Story (Abby, My Love) and some were just plain perplexing (Uncle Vampire??) But all of them represent that time gone by of girl-power and endless sessions of sustained silent reading.
In six hilarious chapters (Friendship, Love, School, Family, Jobs, Terror, and Tragedy), Bustle Features Editor Gabrielle Moss takes the reader on a nostalgic tour of teen book covers of yore, digging deep into the history of the genre as well as the stories behind the best-known series.
The Breakdown
Paperback Crush was a mix between hilarious quips and insight into the stylized writing, trends and topic (babysitting, boarding school, after school adventures) and even those topics that were more sensitive (underage (teen) pregnancy, AIDS or LGBT stories).
I devoured the book in literally 2 hours. Gabrielle Moss is not only incredibly insightful, she has a sharp wit that seeps into everything she writes.
Through out the book, Moss tackles many cultural, sexual and religious expectations and backlash. She drops reminders for us that young adult fiction has always been vital to the lives of teens. It's poignant and purposeful with Moss connects the topics from to the topics that teens were current social issues .
This book was akin to have a good gossip session with your bestie, while arguing over which book series was the best. Moss breaks it down on a basic and invested level, never leaving any one out of the conversation. It was refreshing, quite honestly.
My biggest critic of the book was that the series were not all in the same genre or age range. Some of the titles were small children's series and some of them were romance. I would have preferred her focusing on only the YA genre, and maybe picking just one sub genre to talk out, instead of being so wide spread. I felt like at times, the stamina was lost because it jumped around from so many different genres and sub-genres.
Lastly, while the book was easy to read and fairly fast paced, the ending was very lack luster. I expected it to more thoroughly compare to today's titles, or even talk about how the different stylized writing of today brought on an entirely new slew of rapid YA fans. The book was divided into chapters, and it felt as though there was content missing towards the end.
iI used this book in my classroom, helping the students to connect social issues and trending topics. I recommend this to anyone who enjoys a trip down memory lane, or some one younger who really would love to get to know how the YA boom began. I give this a 3.5 (rounded up to 4) stars!
Final Thoughts
I used this book in my classroom, helping the students to connect social issues and trending topics. I recommend this to anyone who enjoys a trip down memory lane, or some one younger who really would love to get to know how the YA boom began. I give this a 3.5 (rounded up to 4) stars!
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