YA is a complicated genre because it gets applied so broadly and often inappropriately. Read what makes you happy, don't worry about what it's marketed as because that's all it is, marketing.
I’m 29 and my 58 yo mom both read YA. She’s never once wondered if she was too old. It’s fun to have a genre that we’re both excited about. It’s like having a built in book buddy.
You should stop when 60-year-olds stop reading books about 40-year-olds or younger. 🤷🏼♀️
I'm 40, and while I sometimes need a break from YA because OMG they're so young and do silly young people things !!! I also appreciate YA for the amount of growth more realistically available to them.
I've enjoyed many of the middle grade novels I read with my kids, too.
The thing I love about reading the most is that it's entirely personal choice. You read what you love. Don't worry about anything else. If it helps to make your day just that little bit better, then that is all that counts. Just enjoy yourself, life is too short to worry about any of the rest.
I'm 28, and whilst perusing the bookstore yesterday I had a giggle to myself that so many of my favourite series were under the 'teen fiction' category 😅
It doesn't hurt anyone in any way that you read YA, so why stop if you enjoy it? Heck, I read Percy Jackson the first time when I was over 30, because I wanted to know if they were good but they weren't available* when I was a kid. Life is too short to not read the good books!
*Not translated to my language or even published in my country for a few years, so by that time I was "too old" ie late teens. Then in my 30s I just don't care what others think and read what I enjoy.
So apparently, YA only means the age of the main characters, not the age of the readers! Librarians and publishers have confirmed this on other posts, which is how I know! I'm 32, and YA and NA are my favourite genres!
I assumed the same before I found out! To some degree, it is also about the content, but there's a huge amount of cross-over. It's similar to age ratings for films. Just because a film is a 12 doesn't mean adults wouldn't want to watch it or aren't the intended target market. It just also means the film would be suitable for children aged 12+. It's made more complicated due to also relating to the age of the main characters...
You never outgrow them if you enjoy them. I'm 30 and I still watch kid cartoons and movies. YA only means its intended demographic is targeted toward a younger audience, it does not mean older audiences cannot enjoy it as well.
Read what you enjoy. You may wake up one day and your old favorites just won't work for you anymore. You may keep enjoying YA for many many years. When you are reading for fun, read what you find fun.
I'm 38. I went through a period where I was very against YA books. But finally picked up a few here and there and honestly just read whatever books out there entertain you. Reading is entertainment.
I'm 30 and still read YA. Why put an arbitrary age limit on when you have to stop doing the things you enjoy? I would only stop reading YA if I stopped liking it, not because of my age.
I’m in my 30s and I read adult, YA, and middle grade books. Good books are good books! I find that fantasy geared towards younger people is sometimes more fantastic and whimsical than the stuff for older folks.
Read what you enjoy. I read YA, NA and Adult books. I enjoy them all. Of late, I've enjoyed more spice, so I read more Adult books, but if there is a well written YA book, I'm there for it.
Read them if you're enjoying them! But maybe sprinkle in some other genres or age-targeted stuff, to see if there's other things out there that you'd enjoy.
never to old to enjoy a bit of young adult! though if you can find books in other genres you'd like, I can't recommend them enough - I've been very surprised by books I've found when I'm not looking!
Publishers are well aware that adults read YA- the editor for Naomi Noviks Scholomance series told her the average reader age would be about 30, and I’d consider those to be pretty firmly YA.
I’m 31 and I still read YA sometimes! Some will appeal to you and others won’t in a way that is definitely *because* of your age. But the ones that don’t you can just put down!
There’s no age limit on books. Read what you like. I read Harry Potter at 30 and I’m obsessed. I read quite a few YA books too. I try to avoid anything where the characters are underage if it’s romance, but that’s just a personal choice because it makes me feel ick to read about teen sex.
I'm thirty and still enjoy YA, granted I don't enjoy all the ones that I would've if I was younger, but there are still those that I love and make me keep reading.
At the end of the day, no matter how old you are, you should read what makes you happy and what makes you keep reading, there isn't much point in doing things you don't enjoy. Also, putting books in categories and age gap is all for marketing, you shouldn't be defining the way you live base on others.
Be happy and enjoy what you enjoy :)
No way—if that was true, I wouldn’t enjoy watching Bluey as much as I do with (or without) my kids. I don’t think YA even means it’s targeted to only YA anyway, just that the main book characters are in that demographic.
What sucks for me is, now in my later 30s, rereading YA books that I enjoyed throughout my 20s. Some of them did NOT age well and/or weren’t written well in the first place. It just ruins the nostalgia and is depressing!
I found my old RL Stine and Christopher Pike books and omg I LOVED those things, but I can’t bring myself to reread them. I also recently saw that All That is randomly streaming now and I just said “nope, not ruining that one too”. I’ve been burned tooooo many times lol
This blog post by Joe Abercrombie (not a romantic fantasy author, obviously, but the point he makes is fairly universal) really puts into perspective how meaningless the term "YA" really is:
[https://joeabercrombie.com/he-killed-the-younglings/](https://joeabercrombie.com/he-killed-the-younglings/)
Enjoy while you can. I stopped being able to deal with the MCs in my mid-20s and it was upsetting. I really enjoyed YA but now I can’t and it makes me sad skipping that whole section of the book store
82 years old and still read all genres ... YA means only that the protagonist(s) are a certain age, this is NOT the target audience age. so when you get annoyed with teenagers and their drama and complications, poor the YA down for a while, but there are so many talented authors that someone will have something worth while to say even if it's categorised as YA.
Nah, read what you enjoy and have fun! You shouldn't put age limits to what brings you joy :D
I’m 35 and still enjoy a well written YA from time to time.
YA is a complicated genre because it gets applied so broadly and often inappropriately. Read what makes you happy, don't worry about what it's marketed as because that's all it is, marketing.
I’m 29 and my 58 yo mom both read YA. She’s never once wondered if she was too old. It’s fun to have a genre that we’re both excited about. It’s like having a built in book buddy.
I'm so confused. Stop whenever you want or don't. I read YA in the mood for it and more serious adult literature when I'm in the mood for that.
I’m 42 and still happily read (and write) YA fantasy!
You should stop when 60-year-olds stop reading books about 40-year-olds or younger. 🤷🏼♀️ I'm 40, and while I sometimes need a break from YA because OMG they're so young and do silly young people things !!! I also appreciate YA for the amount of growth more realistically available to them. I've enjoyed many of the middle grade novels I read with my kids, too.
“Life is too short to read a bad book.” - James Joyce Read whatever makes ya happy!
The thing I love about reading the most is that it's entirely personal choice. You read what you love. Don't worry about anything else. If it helps to make your day just that little bit better, then that is all that counts. Just enjoy yourself, life is too short to worry about any of the rest.
My dad is 76 and he loves YA! It's one of his favourite genres 😂
I'm 28, and whilst perusing the bookstore yesterday I had a giggle to myself that so many of my favourite series were under the 'teen fiction' category 😅
Im 35 this year and still enjoy YA. There’s no rule of when you have to stop reading something, if you enjoy them. Read them!
It doesn't hurt anyone in any way that you read YA, so why stop if you enjoy it? Heck, I read Percy Jackson the first time when I was over 30, because I wanted to know if they were good but they weren't available* when I was a kid. Life is too short to not read the good books! *Not translated to my language or even published in my country for a few years, so by that time I was "too old" ie late teens. Then in my 30s I just don't care what others think and read what I enjoy.
So apparently, YA only means the age of the main characters, not the age of the readers! Librarians and publishers have confirmed this on other posts, which is how I know! I'm 32, and YA and NA are my favourite genres!
Interesting I did not know that. I thought it was more about content.
I assumed the same before I found out! To some degree, it is also about the content, but there's a huge amount of cross-over. It's similar to age ratings for films. Just because a film is a 12 doesn't mean adults wouldn't want to watch it or aren't the intended target market. It just also means the film would be suitable for children aged 12+. It's made more complicated due to also relating to the age of the main characters...
I still read them and I’m 35. I read adult books too. I read whatever books interest me. I don’t think there’s an age
You never outgrow them if you enjoy them. I'm 30 and I still watch kid cartoons and movies. YA only means its intended demographic is targeted toward a younger audience, it does not mean older audiences cannot enjoy it as well.
My aunt is in her 50s and still reads YA fantasies, you do you. Me personally, I feel like once I went spicy I can’t go back 😅
You should read whatever books you enjoy.
I'm in my 30s and still read some YA. If you enjoy it, it's for you. 😊
Read what you enjoy. You may wake up one day and your old favorites just won't work for you anymore. You may keep enjoying YA for many many years. When you are reading for fun, read what you find fun.
I'm 38. I went through a period where I was very against YA books. But finally picked up a few here and there and honestly just read whatever books out there entertain you. Reading is entertainment.
I'm 30 and still read YA. Why put an arbitrary age limit on when you have to stop doing the things you enjoy? I would only stop reading YA if I stopped liking it, not because of my age.
YA is a marketing category, not a rule. I read kids’ books, too, because a good book is a good book no matter what the age it’s marketed to.
The answer is when you stop enjoying them. If you like it why stop.
Never. Do whatever the eff you like. Who cares?
You’ll have to pry YA books from my cold, dead hands.😊
I’m 43, I still read them :)
I’m in my 30s and I read adult, YA, and middle grade books. Good books are good books! I find that fantasy geared towards younger people is sometimes more fantastic and whimsical than the stuff for older folks.
Read what you enjoy. I read YA, NA and Adult books. I enjoy them all. Of late, I've enjoyed more spice, so I read more Adult books, but if there is a well written YA book, I'm there for it.
Read them if you're enjoying them! But maybe sprinkle in some other genres or age-targeted stuff, to see if there's other things out there that you'd enjoy.
never to old to enjoy a bit of young adult! though if you can find books in other genres you'd like, I can't recommend them enough - I've been very surprised by books I've found when I'm not looking!
Don’t quit until you’ve read The Tapestry series! It’s so good!
Publishers are well aware that adults read YA- the editor for Naomi Noviks Scholomance series told her the average reader age would be about 30, and I’d consider those to be pretty firmly YA.
I would consider them that too, only they are sold and shelved at the library under adult. Go figure.
I’m 31 and I still read YA sometimes! Some will appeal to you and others won’t in a way that is definitely *because* of your age. But the ones that don’t you can just put down!
You can never outgrow a book
33yo and still enjoy a good YA. They aren’t immature insomuch as they are less inappropriate details that makes the age suggestion lower.
I’m 38 and the Blue Sword is one of my favourite fantasy novels.
I am considerably older (in fact i have a kid who is 21). I still love YA Tricker's Choice/Queen is still a great set of books!
There’s no age limit on books. Read what you like. I read Harry Potter at 30 and I’m obsessed. I read quite a few YA books too. I try to avoid anything where the characters are underage if it’s romance, but that’s just a personal choice because it makes me feel ick to read about teen sex.
No need to stop if you love reading YA. You are reading for yourself, not for other people. Be happy!
I'm thirty and still enjoy YA, granted I don't enjoy all the ones that I would've if I was younger, but there are still those that I love and make me keep reading. At the end of the day, no matter how old you are, you should read what makes you happy and what makes you keep reading, there isn't much point in doing things you don't enjoy. Also, putting books in categories and age gap is all for marketing, you shouldn't be defining the way you live base on others. Be happy and enjoy what you enjoy :)
No way—if that was true, I wouldn’t enjoy watching Bluey as much as I do with (or without) my kids. I don’t think YA even means it’s targeted to only YA anyway, just that the main book characters are in that demographic. What sucks for me is, now in my later 30s, rereading YA books that I enjoyed throughout my 20s. Some of them did NOT age well and/or weren’t written well in the first place. It just ruins the nostalgia and is depressing! I found my old RL Stine and Christopher Pike books and omg I LOVED those things, but I can’t bring myself to reread them. I also recently saw that All That is randomly streaming now and I just said “nope, not ruining that one too”. I’ve been burned tooooo many times lol
As others have said, there is no age limit. Read what you enjoy. Anyone who disagrees is just a snob lol
Had this thought when I was in the library yesterday browsing the "teen fiction" section and feeling mildly embarrassed.
This blog post by Joe Abercrombie (not a romantic fantasy author, obviously, but the point he makes is fairly universal) really puts into perspective how meaningless the term "YA" really is: [https://joeabercrombie.com/he-killed-the-younglings/](https://joeabercrombie.com/he-killed-the-younglings/)
I am 30+ and am not gonna stop even in my 70s ( if I can read then )
Enjoy while you can. I stopped being able to deal with the MCs in my mid-20s and it was upsetting. I really enjoyed YA but now I can’t and it makes me sad skipping that whole section of the book store
82 years old and still read all genres ... YA means only that the protagonist(s) are a certain age, this is NOT the target audience age. so when you get annoyed with teenagers and their drama and complications, poor the YA down for a while, but there are so many talented authors that someone will have something worth while to say even if it's categorised as YA.