JOURNAL ARTICLE

Struggling in the Heartland: Romance Novels and Rural Adolescent Identity of Failure.

  • Published In: Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 2025, v. 69, n. 1. P. 1 1 of 3

  • Database: Academic Search Ultimate 2 of 3

  • Authored By: Cassady, Zoe A.; Crisp, Laura; Wickens, Corrine M. 3 of 3

Abstract

Like many adolescents who struggle with academic reading tasks, Suzanna (pseudonym) demonstrated a strong aversion to academic reading beginning in first grade. Secretly, however, Suzanna was a reader—an avid reader of romance literature she believed would not be deemed acceptable for use in school. To protect her burgeoning literate identity, Suzanna hid her passion for reading romance stories and embraced a public persona of literate failure. Resourceful and clever, Suzanna found ways to support her reading, even as a rural resident without reliable transportation and limited resources, through embracing the perceived anonymity of shopping at thrift stores and reading on the Wattpad storytelling platform. Suzanna shared her story with photographs she provided during four 1‐hour photo elicitation interviews (PEI). We explore Suzanna's perceptions regarding her literacy experiences in school through the interrelated theoretical constructs of adolescent literate identities and rural consciousness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Additional Information

  • Source:Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy. 2025/07, Vol. 69, Issue 1, p1
  • Document Type:Article
  • Subject Area:Literature and Writing
  • Publication Date:2025
  • ISSN:1081-3004
  • DOI:10.1002/jaal.70007
  • Accession Number:186113463
  • Copyright Statement:Copyright of Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

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