Crossover Novels

I am not referring to works of fiction that cross genre boundaries - well I am - but specifically the boundary of Young Adult fiction and Adult fiction.  And I'm thinking more specifically of YA fantasy novels: Rick Riordan's Novels, JK Rowling, The Hunger Games, etc.
     I am a huge fan of all kinds of YA books (and middle grades and even younger). It takes a whole different kind of talent for authors to write for teens. This is something I appreciate and admire and I love that many books/series like the ones mentioned above are also enjoyed by adults.
     I am intrigued as to what it is about these YA books that is so appealing and different from adult books. They have amazing settings, characters and plots, but so does most bestselling adult (genre/fantasy) fiction. I cannot pinpoint what would make adult readers become so caught up in the adventures of young people.
      I discussed it with a book loving friend and she said that well-written YA books appeal to adults because we remember being young and can relate to characters, certainly in a way that teens might not be able to understand the motivations of adult characters in adult novels. This is a really good point, but I don't think it's the whole answer.
    I tried to imagine placing an adult cast in some YA books, and found it's difficult. How would that change the perspective, thoughts, actions and emotions of the main characters?   It isn't that the characters are not mature, have never experienced hardship, or don't have responsibilities of caring for loved ones. Most of them have all the same problems with insecurity, family issues, and personality flaws as grown people. So, why is it so hard to see a grown person in these roles?
     The fact that I can't find a satisfactory response to this question may show that I just don't have enough imagination. And maybe that's the answer. It could be that older people have grown away from using their imaginations the way they did when they younger.

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