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Features |
 
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by
Clem Jackson |
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Teenagers – can we really serve them?
Clem Jackson takes a look at just some of the newer books available for the iPod generation.
Teenagers are a conundrum; something seems to happen to our children when they hit their thirteenth birthday (or is it even earlier now?), as demonstrated so brilliantly in the case of Harry Enfield’s ubiquitous monster Kevin. Rob Parsons in his new book Teenagers gives some good reasons as to why many of our lovely children metamorphose into monsters – but that doesn’t make it any easier. There is so much going on for them that perhaps it’s not surprising that their interest in books, church, family meals etc., wanes sharply. Given that, what chance do publishers and retailers have of providing anything remotely interesting to this age group?
Well it’s not all bad news. Sales of ‘teen’ magazines are at an all time high; social networking websites are thronged by young people pouring out their life story; the latest Harry Potter sold over 3 million copies in the first weekend it went on sale, many of these sales to teenagers. So young people do read, they communicate and they are often more articulate than they appear to their parents.
If we can connect with their interests and concerns in a way that is relevant to them, there is a market out there. In this article I’m looking at some of the books which might just prove to be of interest to teenagers today. As the rest of the retailing world knows, this is a group which has more spending power than previous generations of teenagers, but getting them (or their parents) to spend it with you is a question of marketing.
Dealing with life ‘issues’
Firstly, let’s look at books which try and provide help and advice to teenagers in relation to the issues they face. The first couple of examples are more for girls, but then girls read more than boys (or do they?).
Melody Carlson has written a number of books in her True Colors series from NavPress and has two new books in the series out this year, Harsh Pink (9781576839522 / paperback / 224pp) and Moon White (9781576839515). Both are 224 pages long and priced at £8.99. Harsh Pink deals with the issue of peer acceptance and Moon White the issue of Wicca and dabbling in the occult. Written as novels, they handle the issues in a way which will engage younger teenage girls more than most 'Christian living' books would. Brienne Murk is a member of the music group Myrrh (never heard of them) and in her new book Eyes Wide Open (Regal / 9780830744923 / paperback / 176pp / £8.99 - $12.99), subtitled “Avoiding the heartbreak of emotional promiscuity” she takes a look at the thorny issue of sex before marriage. Like a sort of big sister, Murk writes out of her own experiences of honouring a promise to God to remain ‘physically pure until marriage’.
She points out the dangers which can be faced by young people engaging emotionally through the various means available over the WWW, and the chapter titled “Purity: it’s Not Just About Sex” points out that it’s more than abstaining from sex. It covers films watched, books read, clothes worn and things said. However, this is not a preachy book and seems to provide good sound advice.
Another author from NavPress who seems to have a good track record with this age group is Matthew Paul Turner. Two recent publications form Turner are What You Didn't Learn From Your Parents About Christianity (9781576839423) and What You Didn't Learn From Your Parents About Sex (9781576839409). Both paperbacks retail at £7.99. in the first Turner provides a reference guide to the basics of Christian faith, written in a way which is accessible to teenagers. Turner has also written a book with Kerri Pomarolli titled How to Ruin Your Dating Life (NavPress / 9781600061394 / paperback / 176pp / £7.99). This might be a bit American for some but the issues are covered with humour and honesty.
The third in the ‘If’ series from Glyn Barrett has just been published by New Wine. If I Knew What Happened Next (97819037325986 / paperback / 125pp / £5.99) follows Barrett through what he describes as his “day from hell”. This occurred when he was working for a builder in 1990 and charts the progress of his day as it goes from bad to worse. “Guard Geese”, step-ladders, paint tins, white spirit and a stick all play a part in this story which he cleverly breaks up to always leave you wanting to know ‘what happened next’.
The point of the book is that even if we knew what happened next we wouldn’t necessarily be happy and we’d never have any surprises. He intermingles appropriate Bible (and other ‘real life’) illustrations and passages using humour and also challenging readers. A very useful book for those who are always rushing to get to the next stage of their life.
Awesome on the Inside by Tim Hawkins (Good Book Company / 9780958184311 / paperback / 144pp / £7.00) is one UK offering which deals with the issues of self-esteem and image. In this book Hawkins gently challenges teenagers about the issue of ‘image’ and shows that, unlike the world, God is really only interested in how we look on the inside. Hawkins uses examples of people like Elijah, Joseph and David to show what we can learn from their lives and how God’s way is always the best.
The Good Book Company also have Hanging in There by John Dickson (9781875245680 / paperback / 122pp / £6.00). Although published a couple of years ago, and originally written in 1996, this has good, strong, relevant messages for today’s youth. It deals with God, self, church, relationships, sex, feelings, doubts, love and the Bible. Dickson is an Australian and some of his illustrations may be a little strange to Europeans (we don’t get many man-eating sharks in the North Sea) but this would be a good book for a new Christian.
Sex and relationships are the subjects of Givers, Takers and Other Kinds of Lovers by Josh McDowell & Paul Lewis (Christian Focus / 9781845502546 / paperback / 96pp / £6.99). Republished this year by CFP, this book has intriguing chapter titles such as “What is your most important sex organ?” and “Whatever happened to sexual freedom?” which will undoubtedly grab the attention. It covers the importance of self-worth not being allied to sexual performance and points out that being a Christian teenager doesn’t mean you won’t experience the same temptations as others. It explores the warning signals and espouses the benefits of keeping the sexual experience within marriage. Learning about the lives of others and the problems they experience is always helpful and 12 Disciples by Andy Flannagan and Anne Calver (Monarch / 9781854248015 / paperback / 192pp / £7.99) is one such helpful book. Subtitled ‘Young People’s Stories of Crisis and Faith’, it tells the real stories of eleven 21st century young people alongside the story of Simon Peter. Each story is powerful in its own right but I found myself quite moved by Rebecca’s story, dealing with the breakdown in her mother’s health at a critical time in her life leading to a crisis of faith which, eventually, she came through. The story of Tim, witnessing on a train, is also one which made me think how I would have reacted in the situation he found himself in. But all the stories are strong and will encourage and inspire readers.
Finally in this section there is God’s Priorities for Your Life - for Teens (Hendrickson-Alban / 9781598561340 / paperback / 318pp / £8.99). This book contains 75 short chapters covering topics such as ‘self-esteem, spiritual growth, peer pressure, loneliness and dating, to name a few. There are stories, Bible verses and quotations to inspire and provoke thought. The chapter tilted “Why worship?” is one that we could all do with looking at, whatever our age. Again, this may be a little too American for some.
Getting into the Word
Of course many would say that the best advice for dealing with personal issues is to be found in God’s Word, and that is true. However, getting young people to open any book, never mind the Bible, is likely to be a challenge. So publishers need to be creative in how they present the truth relevantly, without diluting the message. One recent example of using creativity to encourage people to get into God’s Word was the publication of the first section of the Manga Bible.
Comprising drawings by one of the UK’s foremost Manga artists, Siku, combined with the TNIV, this provides a way into the Word which might encourage otherwise reluctant readers. The comic-book style is also more appealing to boys and the references included mean that taking the story further, by going into the Bible, is easy. Now the full version of the Manga Bible with Siku’s drawings has just been released, the TNIV Manga Bible Extreme (Hodder & Stoughton / 9780340910467 / paperback / 1168pp / £14.99). Also from Hodder there is The Manga Bible Raw (9780340910450 / paperback / 224pp / £8.99) with Siku’s drawings but without the TNIV text. Another offering which may well prove popular with this age group is Nick Page’s Big Story (Authentic / 9781850787266 / paperback / 128pp / £7.99). Page uses techniques first used in his Tabloid Bible retelling the Bible story, using the vehicle of five ‘Acts’ – “The Fathers”, “The Exodus”, “The Kings”, “The Messiah”, and "The Church”. Page is a great storyteller and the accompanying commentaries encourage readers to engage with the Bible.
There are plenty of ‘youth’ Bibles around as well to encourage young people to get into God’s word. Both my daughters still have their Youth Bibles even though neither is still a teenager. And there is also of course the legacy left us by Rob Lacey with both the word on the street (Zondervan / 9780310932253 / paperback / 496pp / £8.99) – also available on CD (the essential word on the street / 9780310921394 / £9.49) giving the chance to hear Lacey performing his own work - and The Liberator (Zondervan / 9780310258179 / paperback / 416pp / £8.99) being very accessible versions of God’s Word for young people – and great for dramatic readings too.
The Soul Survivor Generation
As I write this, Soul Survivor is about to get underway again, an event which is pretty important in the eyes of many of the Christian youth in the UK. So anything coming out of the Survivor network is likely to be of interest. We’ve had Matt Redman penning books for some time and now Tim Hughes has written his second book, this one on the back of a recent album. Holding Nothing Back by Tim Hughes (Survivor Kingsway / 9781842913529 / paperback / 106 pp / £5.99) has the same title as his latest album and, not surprisingly for a worship leader, encourages us to worship God with all our ‘heart, mind and strength’. Hughes covers areas such as creativity, humility, and the greatness of God. And this book does explain clearly why our worship of God needs to be much more than singing songs at events. It will clearly be a hit with the Survivor generation. It’s also worth the money alone to have those wonderful words (p24) from the famous ‘I wonder do you know Him?’ monologue of Dr S.M. Lockridge, trying to describe the ‘Indescribable God'. If you’ve ever heard the audio version you’ll understand!
A significant book, which covers, amongst other things, this issue of worship being more than singing, comes from the founder of Soul Survivor, Mike Pilavachi. Worship, Evangelism, Justice (Survivor-Kingsway / 9781842912843 / paperback / 144pp / £5.99), written with Lisa Hoeksma, majors on themes which are key to Pilavachi and his ministry. It is full of personal anecdotes which go a long way to help the reader understand the basis for his thinking that worship, evangelism and justice go hand in hand. He points out that Worship is our highest priority, it’s what we were made for, but we need the right attitude – it has to be our lifestyle. And yes, it’s more than just singing songs. And well done to Kingsway for keeping the cover price of both these books below £6.00. There’s plenty of material out there and so my initial thinking that there wasn’t much around for teenagers has been changed. And I haven’t even touched on the vast array of Bible Study resources, Youth Leader resources (of which there are plenty), CDs and DVDs or even the Dance Praise products. The challenge for the retailer, as always, is how to get the potential customer in through the door.
How can you serve them and their needs? Well, developing a relationship with your local youth leaders/pastors is one way. How about holding an event in your store just for young people, perhaps built around a visit from a wellknown youth pastor or worship leader? You never know, they might discover where you are and what you have to offer.
Clem Jackson is the editor of Christian Marketplace magazine.
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