I am currently enrolled in a Young Adult Literature course and had to build a thematic resource guide/database for theme of my choosing. I chose to focus on
diverse young adult fantasy literature for the Thematic Resource Guide
assignment. Young adult fantasy is one of my favorite genres, and it is
extremely popular right now. Because of its popularity, I wanted to hone in on
young adult fantasy that contained diverse cultures and characters. I purposely
chose novels that contained characters of color, LGBTQ+ characters, and books
that contained cultural mythology (i.e. The
Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi is based on Hindu mythology). When I
was growing up, most of the fantasy that I had access to was “white-washed” and
didn’t contain much diversity or diverse characters. Looking back, it saddens
me that there wasn’t much representation in the books published then, but it is
very exciting to see how much the young adult fantasy market is expanding to
include characters of color, cultures, and sexualities.
Google Sites is my platform of choice. I researched a few
sites, including Wordpress, Wix, Weebly, and Blogger, but Blogger didn’t format
to my liking and the other sites weren’t as easy to navigate and manipulate as
Google Sites. Because of it is user friendly, I believe that Google Sites is a platform
that librarians can use that is easy to update and maintain. Another benefit of
using Google Sites is that there is an option for the creator to give
permission to other users to edit the contents of the website. This will allow
other library staff members to help maintain the site, freeing up the head
librarian for emergencies or higher priorities.
This thematic resource guide was made in order to give
young adults a database that they can refer to when they want diverse book
recommendations. The Google Site is streamlined and not overly busy, so it is
easy for users to navigate and gain information about young adult fantasy books
and authors. Because this is geared toward more diverse literature, I think it
will be a motivation for library users to check out these books. Now that they
have a database they can reference, that will continue to grow, they can add
these books to their “to- be- read” lists. The books in this guide cover a
variety of representation, which is important for young adults. It is important
for them to read books with characters that come from their culture or their
race. It is important for them to read books with homosexual, bisexual, or
gender fluid characters. Not only do these books give readers relatable characters
in which they can find comfort, but they also expose readers to differing
viewpoints and ways of life. They push readers outside their worlds and comfort
zones as well as build empathy for others. These books show young adults that
they matter, that their culture matters, and that they deserve to be in the
spotlight.
Overall I really enjoyed this assignment. Not only was it
fun, but I learned a lot about diverse authors and books in the young adult
fantasy genre. I am excited to share this knowledge and these amazing works and
authors with others, particularly the patrons of my future public or school
library. I plan on continuing to maintain this site or possibly expand to a
larger site in the future because I do believe that librarians and library
users need easily accessible databases that feature diverse literature.
You can view my database here.
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