Sometimes, I'm still surprised when people are offended by the drinking and language and, most of all, the sexuality in Looking for Alaska. I don't feel annoyed or enraged or any of that--just surprised.

(Most of the people who find Alaska offensive seem like totally nice people who I would like in real life; we just disagree about what books do and do not accomplish.)

But anyway, I was reading such a review today--this one, in fact, calls the novel blasphemous. I don't know what's so blasphemous about it--as I've said before, I think Alaska is basically Christian Fiction. (People laugh whenever I say that, but I'm not kidding!)

Right, but anyway. This reviewer asks, "Are there any uncrossable lines anymore? Are there ten, seven, or even five words, you can’t use in YA fiction?"

My answer to that question: The idea of uncrossable lines presupposes that the manner in which the line is crossed is irrelevant. In fact, all that matters is why and how the line gets crossed. See, for instance, the sex in Coe Booth's brilliant new novel Kendra, which is so incredibly sad that you cry while reading it; sex is a vitally important part of the book, but it's not in any way arousing or titillating. (In fact, rendering sex explicit often has the effect of de-eroticizing it, de-romanticizing it, and finally making it less attractive and interesting--which is, for instance, why high-definition porn has famously sold poorly.)

That said, the whole question reminds me that YA writers ARE capable of real obscenity, as evidenced by this hilariously dirty Twitter, which I happen to know was started by two YA authors. (Really. And no, I'm not saying who. You'd never guess.)