Why the Best Kids Books Are Written in Blood {non fiction}

Sherman Alexie's "Why the Best Kids Books Are Written in Blood" essay is in response to Meghan Cox Gurdon's article "Darkness Too Visible", about the sudden increase of dark, horrifying young adult literature. Gurdon attacked these new books, calling them "lurid", "gruesome, and "stomach-clenching", arguing that the topics in YA books are just too dark for teens to handle. Alexie's essay was the exact opposite. He argues that these books are what gives teens comfort, pointing out that teens deal with the exact same issues authors write about in their books. Alexie is both an author of YA fiction and a victim of some of the issues that are mentioned, so he has a good idea of what teens go through. He says, "I write books for teenagers because I vividly remember what it felt like to be a teen facing everyday and epic dangers... I write to give them weapons... I write in blood because I remember what it felt like to bleed." 
Alexie wanted me to feel that YA books are powerful enough to change a person's life, and he of all people should know. At the same time, he wanted me to disregard Gurdon's opinion, saying he "laughed at her condescension." One way he makes readers feel that Gurdon's statements are false is by saying that her article was simply "complaints" about contemporary teen literature, which makes it seem like her argument was not well supported and was just a few sentences from a snobby, whiny, unknowledgeable woman. One way Alexie tries to make readers understand the power of YA books on teens is by using structure, where he has bits of narrative about a certain teenager mixed in with his idea about teens in general and stories from his own life. This is very effective because it makes Alexie seem like one of the teens, so you trust him to know what he's talking about when he says that YA books are comforting to teens. In one paragraph, Alexie says, "There are millions of teens who read because they are sad and lonely and enraged... They read because they believe, despite the callow protestations of certain adults, that books--especially the dark and dangerous ones--will save them." He then follows this with two paragraphs about himself, about why he read when he was younger, and they are very similar.
Sherman Alexie did an amazing job of convincing me that YA books are important to teens and society in general, the darker the better. I learned that teens who read books about the issues they are dealing with gives them comfort and "weapons", which help them "fight their monsters". I felt like I was reading an essay by a teen, the people most affected by these discussions, but with the literary skills and years of Alexie.