Girls on Fire

Sarah Hentges is an associate professor of American studies at the University of Maine at Augusta. She also teaches women’s and gender studies and maintains a blog and website at www.cultureandmovement.com.

“Girls on Fire really shines in Part I, where Hentges combines American studies, women’s and gender studies, and more traditional literary criticism to create an interdisciplinary framework that allows for a more nuanced interpretation of the many different themes and qualities of YA dystopian literature. ...this book is a valuable addition to the literary criticism canon...currently one of the only texts that attempts to look at YA dystopian literature through an interdisciplinary lens”—Resources for Women’s and Gender Studies; “A compelling study that provides insightful perspectives on YA literature and the power of dystopian heroines.”—International Research Society for Children’s Literature; “Loaded with powerful information and presented without pretension, the themes discussed in Girls on Fire are extremely timely and vitally important for all members of society, but especially to the young women that will rule the new world dawning on the horizon.”—Spoiler Free Movie Sleuth

• Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsPrefaceIntroduction: Girls on FirePart I: Excavating Theories and LegaciesOne. Interdisciplinarity and Intersectionality: Modeling the Complex WorldTwo. Shaping Dystopic Literature as Young Adult, Feminist and CriticalThree. Girls’ Studies and Popular Culture: Segregated FeminismsInterlude—Fangirling: A Passion for YA Dystopia deletePart II: Excavating Fiction, Imagination and ApplicationFour. Contemporary Dystopia: Living the FutureFive. Themes, Patterns, Trends and TransgressionsSix. Othered Girls Toward Intersectional FuturesSeven. Off the Page and Into the WorldConclusion: Utopian Visions for Dystopian RealitiesAppendix 1: Girls on Fire Books Appendix 2: Something Like a Rating SystemChapter NotesBibliographyIndex