Relationship with the YA Genre

Meg Rosoff’s novel How I Live Now expresses literary themes and techniques that are in tune with those that define the genre of Young Adult literature. Young Adult literature generally, although there are some exceptions/additions to these rules, focuses on a character(s) within the young adult age range, 13-22. They are usually told in first person, and follow the character through his or her development of identity and personality. In How I Live Now, we get fifteen-year-old Daisy’s first person narrative of her life during a war stricken present-day England. Through her narration we follow the personal changes she undergoes, physically, emotionally and psychologically, within the larger context of the war. This book specifically focuses on the effects of war on adolescents. Though there are some adult concepts, such as sex, it is nonetheless relatable to a general Young Adult audience for its ability to work through the coming-of-age themes that young adults undergo.