Can young adults identify with the main characters?

Use this forum to discuss the December 2017 Book of the Month, End of the Last Great Kingdom by Victor Rose.
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briellejee
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Re: Can young adults identify with the main characters?

Post by briellejee »

i'm a young adult and yes i can definitely relate to the characters lol
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Post by k2rugman »

The mark of a good book is that any reader can identify with the characters!
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Post by Rosemary Okoko »

Young adults still encounter bullying at that age and they will relate with Brimestone.
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Post by RebeccasReading »

Christina Rose wrote: 03 Dec 2017, 18:54 Even though the physical struggles are acts of fantasy, I do think the inner struggles are relatable. Each main character struggles with fitting in and finding his or her own way in the world. I like that the author delves into the strengths and weaknesses of these young characters. It makes them that much more relatable.

Yes, I do feel like Heat is a strong enough character for young girls to look up to. Even though she struggles, she also rises. I think her lack of perfection makes her more relatable, and the different ways she overcomes her weaknesses show examples of attainable strength and highlight real qualities like endurance.
Yes, I totally agree. When I was younger, I had to stop reading books with "perfect" characters (such as Sweet Valley High series, etc) to those with characters who struggled more. Characters who have flaws helped me come to terms with the fact that it was ok for me to have flaws too. We all have weakness but it's how we overcome it that makes us strong.
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Post by Christina Rose »

RebeccasReading wrote: 24 Jan 2018, 11:04
Christina Rose wrote: 03 Dec 2017, 18:54 Even though the physical struggles are acts of fantasy, I do think the inner struggles are relatable. Each main character struggles with fitting in and finding his or her own way in the world. I like that the author delves into the strengths and weaknesses of these young characters. It makes them that much more relatable.

Yes, I do feel like Heat is a strong enough character for young girls to look up to. Even though she struggles, she also rises. I think her lack of perfection makes her more relatable, and the different ways she overcomes her weaknesses show examples of attainable strength and highlight real qualities like endurance.
Yes, I totally agree. When I was younger, I had to stop reading books with "perfect" characters (such as Sweet Valley High series, etc) to those with characters who struggled more. Characters who have flaws helped me come to terms with the fact that it was ok for me to have flaws too. We all have weakness but it's how we overcome it that makes us strong.
I used to read Sweet Valley High books, also, lol. I’ve changed my reading habits as well, and I do find myself relating more now with the characters within the stories.
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Post by Star88 »

Definitely! I remember dealing with insecurities in my teen years. When we are young, we all try to find who we are. Some of us are still trying. In our journey, we are bound to be insecure about who we are.
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Post by Hephzi Lolami »

The book has young adults that today's young adults can relate to. Considering the struggles as a young adult, the certain emotions and all that.

Also, yes, I do think Heat was a strong enough character for female young adult readers to look up to, because her character and own peesonalty was well portrayed. The young adults of today want someone strong so when they go through certain situations, they would remember someone overcame it and they also can. After all, books are reflections of daily occurences.
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Post by Samy Lax »

You have presented a tough question right there. Teen years and the choices and preferences made during those years are quite unpredictable. It's possible that many teenagers would easily relate to the main characters. However, I can easily say that many would just not be able to do so. But, that is the case with most age groups, isn't it? Some can relate to the main characters whereas others cannot.
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Post by eBookreviewer »

Yes, I think like some characters Heat are strong for young readers to look up to.
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Post by dphelps1113 »

I feel that this text is relatable. With the character Brimstone and the whole issue of bullying, I feel that many, especially children during this era, will be able to relate. We all go through it at some point and we need more of this in literature, so children these days don't feel alone.
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Post by nfdaniel85 »

YA keeps me connected to my inner teen. I think stories like these with bullying and insecurities fuel my empathy for what kids go through today. It's hard to forget how awkward puberty was when you are regularly reminded through novels. Reading these comments makes me want to get to reading this book.
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Post by Nelsy Mtsweni »

I think the characters are relatable even to young adults. Young adults have wild imaginations.
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Post by Cristina Chifane »

Christina Rose wrote: 03 Dec 2017, 18:54 Even though the physical struggles are acts of fantasy, I do think the inner struggles are relatable. Each main character struggles with fitting in and finding his or her own way in the world. I like that the author delves into the strengths and weaknesses of these young characters. It makes them that much more relatable.

Yes, I do feel like Heat is a strong enough character for young girls to look up to. Even though she struggles, she also rises. I think her lack of perfection makes her more relatable, and the different ways she overcomes her weaknesses show examples of attainable strength and highlight real qualities like endurance.
Thank you for this topic and your feedback. I think a successful young adult book is one in which they can identify with the main characters' emotions and struggles. In addition, a character like Heat is relatable particularly because the author gives the character a touch of humanity rather than insist on the hero-like typology.
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Post by ktom »

I definitely think so. The characters have great depth and we the author does a good job of showing us why they do what they do, so we can empathize. The storyline is complex without being overbearing and goes into great detail which I think holds their attention.
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Post by dphelps1113 »

I feel that yes, young adults can identify with the main characters. We have all been through something similar to the struggles related in the book at one point in time.
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