sweet valley high

[Katy]

Sweet Valley, Sweet Valley Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiigh Hiighiiighhh!
I loved Sweet Valley High, I always wanted a little red jeep like they had and to be 16. I had the 'Secret Diaries', they were brilliant. But I just remember Todd in the TV series being so ugly and wondering why Liz was with him. Jess was best. Ahh, reminiscing! I don't think there's anything wrong with them, I loved all that American teen goo, Clueless was brilliant too. But I was about 9 when it was all out so all I wanted to be was an American teenager!

[Moose]

Heh Clueless was actually a very clever parody of Jane Austen's Emma which surprisingly, translated rather well to early nineties LA

[Katy]

Yeah, but Emma didn't have those brilliant knee socks and a computerised wardrobe did it now?! Those will win everytime! How's those reviews Moose?

[hope189]

I've read Sweet valley and I absolutely disliked those books. The book makes it look like the only problems in a teenager's world are those concerning clothes, boys and being popular. But, I like 'Sweet sixteen'!( Go figure!)

[Yak]

I suspect that life in an affluent Californian family as a teenager is prolly rather different to life anywhere else . Certainly I could not identify with the characters at all, even though they were my 'generation' in a way that Blyton's schoolgirls were not. But I identified with Blyton's characters much more!

[auscatherine]

Never read Sweet Valley High but was a huge Judy blume fan from about 11yo onwards (when her books first became known in Australia). In fact, I would probably divide my childhood into the Enid Blyton and the Judy Blume phases.

[Yak]

I liked Blume too. Her books were very different from Blyton's - much more 'raw' and they dealt with 'issues' - but I found them very helpful and comforting in a way when I was growing up. She had a good understanding of the things that teenagers go through I think.

[Anita Bensoussane]

I read a few Judy Blume books at the age of 12 - 14 and must admit I found them depressing. The characters came across as self-absorbed and full of anxiety about growing up and even something like starting one's periods was made to seem like a major hurdle. Whenever I read a Judy Blume book, I was left with the impression that becoming an adult was something frightening and overwhelming (rather than something that happened gradually, bit by bit, and was a perfectly natural part of life.)

Anita

[hope189]

I read a few Judy Blume books at the age of 12 - 14 and must admit I found them depressing. The characters came across as self-absorbed and full of anxiety about growing up and even something like starting one's periods was made to seem like a major hurdle. Whenever I read a Judy Blume book, I was left with the impression that becoming an adult was something frightening and overwhelming (rather than something that happened gradually, bit by bit, and was a perfectly natural part of life.)

Anita

I absolutely agree with you, Anita.

[Yak]

Well, I found them helpful Maybe just me.

[manzanita]

I don't think I can express how much I dislike the Sweet Valley series in all it's guises! Sickly sweet American perfectionist at it's best. Or worst. I've never seen "Clueless" and I doubt I will as I don't care for Jane Austen at all!

I remember Judy Blume (Blubber, Are You There God, It's Me Margaret come to mind!) but I never really identified with Judy Blume, probably because it was American and I've grown up in England. Some stuff may be international like menarche, but there was something missing for me in Judy Blume.

I've since found that a lot stuff that was meant to guide teenagers through rites of passage and typical teenage concerns was often irrelevant to me or I didn't connect with it at all. Not because I didn't have the problem, but because the problem in question wasn't the same as mine somehow.

I still find that as an adult - popular media either doesn't hold my interest at all or just holds no relevance to my life.