Street Lit

I think the street lit genre is probably one of the best ways to counter the issues we've been discussing about the white-washed publishing industry in YA lit. Since I've been researching and writing for my seminar next week on realistic fiction, this addresses a whole other segment of YAs whose stories are often ignored by novelists. Unfortunately, the experiences of youth who live in impoverished ghettos where drugs, violence, unplanned pregnancies, and gangs are a reality. Much like problem novels and realistic fiction, street lit can be an outlet for urban youth to deal with the horrifying problems they face in their communities. This not only draws in a relatively un-tapped or reluctant reader base, but serves as bibliotherapy, which I'll talk about more next week. 

I imagine that street lit is not without its critics. While some may find it to be a source of inspiration to avoid negative life situations, others may see it as an acceptance of problems in ghetto communities. I would fall towards the former, but parents or educators may see it as problematic and challenge the literature -- especially if they have no experience with the kind of life the average urban lit reader lives.