American Library Association Challenged Books
April 11th, 2011 at 7:09:57 PM
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The ALA puts out a list of the books whose appropriateness is most often challenged for inclusion.
A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. Challenges do not simply involve a person expressing a point of view; rather, they are an attempt to remove material from the curriculum or library, thereby restricting the access of others.
And Tango Makes Three is a 32 page story of two male penguins that spent six years hatching an egg and raising a chick. It has been the most challenged book for five years in a row.
Male and female chinstrap penguins take turns incubating eggs, sitting on them for shifts of five to 10 days, so males are accustomed to playing a serious role. After the chick was grown one of the two males later mated with a female, and abandoned the other male penguin.
To us old guys, only Brave New World sounds familiar. I think Aldous Huxley would be please that his book was arousing such emotion after 62 years.
A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. Challenges do not simply involve a person expressing a point of view; rather, they are an attempt to remove material from the curriculum or library, thereby restricting the access of others.
And Tango Makes Three is a 32 page story of two male penguins that spent six years hatching an egg and raising a chick. It has been the most challenged book for five years in a row.
Male and female chinstrap penguins take turns incubating eggs, sitting on them for shifts of five to 10 days, so males are accustomed to playing a serious role. After the chick was grown one of the two males later mated with a female, and abandoned the other male penguin.
| 2010 | 2001 | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1. "And Tango Makes Three" by Peter Parnell and Justin Richardson | 1. Harry Potter, by J.K. Rowling |
| Reasons: Homosexuality, Religious Viewpoint, Unsuited to Age Group | Reasons: anti-family, occult/Satanism, religious viewpoint, violence | |
| 2 | 2. "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian" by Sherman Alexie | 2. Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck |
| Reasons: Offensive language, Racism, Sex Education, Sexually Explicit, Unsuited to Age Group, Violence | Reasons: offensive language, racism, unsuited to age group, violence | |
| 3 | 3. "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley | 3. The Chocolate War, by Robert Cormier |
| Reasons: Insensitivity, Offensive Language, Racism, Sexually Explicit | Reasons: offensive language, sexually explicit, unsuited to age group, violence | |
| 4 | 4. "Crank" by Ellen Hopkins | 4. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou |
| Reasons: Drugs, Offensive Language, Sexually Explicit | Reasons: offensive language, sexually explicit | |
| 5 | 5. "The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins | 5. Summer of My German Soldier, by Bette Greene |
| Reasons: Sexually Explicit, Unsuited to Age Group, Violence | Reasons: offensive language, racism, sexually explicit | |
| 6 | 6. "Lush" by Natasha Friend | 6. The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger |
| Reasons: Drugs, Offensive Language, Sexually Explicit, Unsuited to Age Group | Reasons: offensive language, unsuited to age group | |
| 7 | 7. "What My Mother Doesn’t Know" by Sonya Sones | 7. Alice (series), by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor |
| Reasons: Sexism, Sexually Explicit, Unsuited to Age Group | Reasons: sexually explicit, unsuited to age group | |
| 8 | 8. "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By In America" by Barbara Ehrenreich | 8. Go Ask Alice, by Anonymous |
| Reasons: Drugs, Inaccurate, Offensive Language, Political Viewpoint, Religious Viewpoint | Reasons: drugs, offensive language, sexually explicit | |
| 9 | 9. "Revolutionary Voices" edited by Amy Sonnie | 9. Fallen Angels, by Walter Dean Myers |
| Reasons: Homosexuality, Sexually Explicit | Reason: offensive language | |
| 10 | 10. "Twilight" by Stephenie Meyer | 10. Blood and Chocolate, by Annette Curtis Klause |
| Reasons: Religious Viewpoint, Violence | Reasons: sexually explicit, unsuited to age group |
To us old guys, only Brave New World sounds familiar. I think Aldous Huxley would be please that his book was arousing such emotion after 62 years.
April 11th, 2011 at 7:43:55 PM
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Quote:10. "Twilight" by Stephenie Meyer
If this is the basis of the Twilight movies, I vote that it must be an abomination. But I'm one of those "old guys".
There's no secret. Just know what you're talking about before you open your mouth.
April 11th, 2011 at 8:11:57 PM
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And where is the next book burning to be ? Might I suggest Salem, Massachusetts.
April 11th, 2011 at 10:59:07 PM
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Quote: rxwineIf this is the basis of the Twilight movies, I vote that it must be an abomination. But I'm one of those "old guys".
To quote Stephen King, Both Rowling and Meyer, they’re speaking directly to young people. … The real difference is that Jo Rowling is a terrific writer and Stephenie Meyer can’t write worth a darn. She’s not very good.
But the Meyer books are not being challenged because of their quality. When I was in school parents used to challenge Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn and sometimes Tom Sawyer. A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess and Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut were always challenged. James Baldwin (who died when I was 30) got many parents upset for being obscene and gay.
The U.S Supreme Court finally cleared Fanny Hill from obscenity charges in 1966 over 200 years after it was written.
Brave New World (which I read a long time ago) gets challenged precisely for the concepts that the book was written to protest. It seems that many people only read passages of the book.
April 12th, 2011 at 12:03:48 AM
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Book burning? Witches were hanged, not burned, as a result of the Salem Witchtrials. And the activities took place in the town that was then named Salem, not in the town that is now named Salem and has all its witch-related tourist industry.Quote: buzzpaffAnd where is the next book burning to be ? Might I suggest Salem, Massachusetts.
