The State of Play with YA

by Marcus Greville - The Read- Booksellers NZ

Should we care about YA fiction? The answer to that is to question my sanity for even asking it. According to Nielsen figures, bookshops are back in the growth game, and children’s books are huge:  within the general growth leading into 2016 of 10% in volume and 4% in value, the share of children’s books within that globally was huge. For example, Nielsen reported that, internationally, the children’s share of print markets is averaging 34%, but in NZ and Australia it’s almost 50%. YA fiction is a large part of that. There is good reason to feel good about the future of reading.

This week The Read has a closer look at how teens are engaging with books, and how books (through purchasing, lending and marketing) are engaging with teens. We talked with Paper Plus’s Jenni Keestra (Group Book Manager), Fiona Mackie (Teacher-Librarian at Pinehurst School, convening judge for 2016 NZ Book Awards for Children and Young Adults), owner of The Original Children’s Bookshop Mary Sangster, and Librarian Bridget Schaumann from King’s High School. Read on.