Dreaming In Color: Identifying Race And Ethnicity In YA Speculative Fiction Reviews

Speculative fiction is a popular YA genre that has shown a lack of diversity through the years. With the most recent call for diverse youth literature, librarians and youth advocates are in need of authentic diverse speculative fiction titles to promote. This study analyzed 2,994 reviews for YA speculative fiction published between 2010 and 2015, and identified 380 titles containing racially or ethnically diverse major characters. This study reports on what racial and ethnic diversity is present in current published YA speculative fiction and addresses issues found with racial and ethnic identification in two major review sources. The data presented and calls to action included can be used to continue the discussion of authentic diverse representation in YA speculative fiction.