Banned Books

[monarch64]

Gender Queer. A Memoir. Again, it’s not the subject matter nor the written word that I oppose for young minors, it’s the illustrations.

Thanks.

 

[LightBright]

As someone who loves fiction, poetry, and non-fiction I’m still somewhat of a censor when it comes to my own kids. This doesn't mean my kids don’t have bookshelves of books, library trips on the regular and school libraries stocked with really good books.

I simply don’t want my kids accessing stuff in school that I think is destructive or disturbing. This does not mean I don’t want them exposed to all kinds of ideas and art. It just means that as a parent I want the school to have common sense and no agenda.

Regarding some of the banned books we’ve mentioned here and in the banned book list. It’s not something other parents need to be alarmed about when some parents ask to remove things that offend them from the shelves of their school. Maybe the answer is picking and supplying books from these wonderful authors that are appropriate to the audience. A rule of thumb for me is - if you would never allow your kids to see a TV show or Movie with the same subjects or images, remove the books.

If parents want their kids exposed to all the subject matter (see the Banned Book List that Missy linked to) please feel free to stock your own at home libraries.

For example, on that book list is a book by Sherman Alexie, who I read and appreciate. Not all his fiction is disturbing. Why are we upset that one specific title is adult themed? Just remove it and pick some other book he wrote for your school library.

I just read Great Gatsby for the first time. It’s adult themed, but not overly explicit. High Schoolers -might- be able to grasp the socioeconomic and historical depictions in his works. His fiction is vastly cleaner and far deeper than most teen fiction.

In short, our kids benefit from great literary books. If a book is too explicit or upsetting to read out loud, or show photos of, at a school board meeting, it’s not appropriate for my kids’ school.