Young Adults

Young Adults by Daniel M. Pinkwater (1985) I bought this book on March 15, 1986, in New York. (Back when I used to write my name and the date in books—should I do that again?) It may have been the first Danial Pinkwater book I read. It's a hodgepodge of stuff, including Young Adult Novel, a short novel, and a couple of followups to that, and a lot of great computer art by Pinkwater—all very funny. I remember being pretty amazed by the “Young Adults” sagas—which are stories about a group of misfit boys in high school who have a club called the Wild Dada Ducks. I think I was amazed at how closely he echoed my (and my friends) high school experience—not the specifics so much as the whole feeling. Reading it now—the whole story of how the Ducks single-out a nerd, outsider kid—made me uncomfortable (perhaps because we're more aware and sensitive about “bullying,” now)—but the way it plays out is so unexpected and true to life, it remains funny and fascinating. The subsequent sagas aren't quite as sharp, but they're entertaining and weird. When the kids go off to college it jumps several levels of maturity—it gets quite graphic. This all got me to wondering how current institutions warn (or don't) readers and parents about content. I'm kind of glad I'm not in that world, I guess, since I feel like, if you can read it, it's okay. But then, I remember reading The Godfather when I was in Seventh Grade, thinking, this is a little much, but I'm into it.