Bildungsroman or the coming of age genre

Last night at bookclub we discussed This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald. This debut novel was published in 1920 and follows the wealthy, charismatic and good looking Amory Blaine from his boarding school days, to Princeton and life in New York City post WW1. We all really enjoyed it and like the book nerds we are read passages aloud, talked about the themes and issues emerging and then found similarities in the story with recent TV teen dramas we've been watching! We've actually never in 2 years discussed a book in as much detail! We loved the lyrical, poetic style of writing and the rise and fall of the main character from youth to adulthood. We thought besides the style of writing, it could easily have been written today - the story is timeless! We started describing the book as a coming of age novel and decided we'd read another coming of age novel this month. So I googled coming of age novels (of course) and came across this word - Bildungsroman. I was fascinated to discover that this is the fancy word for the coming of age genre and has certain key characteristics like: psychological and moral growth on the journey from youth to adulthood ending in some sort of personal growth! Aha my inner me screamed! I *heart* bildungsroman! I always love coming of age stories be they books, movies or TV! We settled on our next book - A Hero Aint Nothin but a Sandwich and I set out to think about all the other bildungsroman I'd experienced and loved! Here is a list of some I've read and watched that I think represent the genre - of course there are many, many more!
 Books

• Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
• Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
• To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
• Perks of Being a Wallflower - Stephen Chbosky
• Catcher in the Rye - J D Salinger
• Charlotte's Web - E. B. White
• Secret History - Donna Tartt
• Forever - Judy Blume
• Oranges are not the Only Fruit - Jeanette Winterson
• Persepolis - Marjane Satrapi
• How I live now - Meg Rosoff
• Harry Potter - Series
• Hunger Games - Series

Movies

• Dead Poets Society
• Almost Famous
• Pump up the Volume
• Heathers
• Basketball Diaries
• Rushmore
• Donnie Darko
• Virgin Suicides
• Stand by Me
• My Girl
• Dirty Dancing

TV

• Friday Night Lights
• Vampire Diaries
• Skins
• Gossip Girl
• OC
• Dawsons Creek
• Degrassi
• Beverly Hills 90210
• Twin Peaks
• Buffy

Harry Potter fangirl outed

I'm sure I'm not the only one but I'm really excited about the final Harry Potter movie! I read all the books (many times) and it was torture waiting a whole year for the next one to come out! Then came the movies and again the painful 12 month wait for the next one. To ease these painful times I would reread the books and get together with friends to discuss the stories and characters and draw maps of Hogwarts. Yes, many a night over a cold beer we'd be caught drawing on napkins and coasters and arguing about where the Quidditch pitch was in relation to Hagrids house! And when I got home I'd dream about my adventures with Harry, Ron and Hermione! Yes, I reread all the books, many times and loved it. Before each new book came out I'd reread all the books. Before the next movie came out I'd reread all the books and rewatch the movies (yes, I am prone to extremes). Of course, as the books got longer and longer and the movies were coming out during the wait for the last 3 books - there was a lot of reading and watching to do so I slacked off a bit. Now I don't tend to reread every book before the new movie comes out but I always reread the book before and the book of the movie about to come out. And I watch the movie before the one about to come out. I did this last year before watching Harry Potter and the deathly hallows part 1 at Gold Class and I'll do it again for part 2 coming out in July.

What has this 12 year journey of books and movies added to my life? So many things really. I feel like they're part of me. I feel connected and close to them. I feel like they're my friends. They taught me to have courage, believe in yourself and your friends, love owls, take chances and so much more. I feel quite emotional that this movie is the final installment. If there were more books and movies coming out I would read and watch them all with just as much enthusiasm. Is this kind of extreme commitment to something a form of escapism or something more?