They tried to ban this book today.

This book she holds in her hand.

This book she held in her head, then shared with the word.

This book that, if it were a CD, readers would listen to on repeat.

This book that contains a scene which offended someone, which led to a challenge, which led to a committee review. They - the capital T-kind of They - decided that this book could stay on the shelves.

We should celebrate.

Shouldn't we?

They are going to keep this book in the library - and (partially, lightly, barely, noticeably) deface it. They are going to put a sticker on the front cover to let everyone know that this book is for "mature readers."

That's funny, considering it was an adult - whose maturity is assumed, based on age - who challenged it. Funny because adults are supposed to more mature than teenagers. More knowledgeable. More accepting.

What exactly is a mature reader? Will interested parties have to take a multiple-choice test before being permitted to check out this book? How many questions will truly have right answers?

What will be stickered? What won't be stickered? What will the stickers say?

Why not sticker everything? There's something for everything, something for everyone. Something to object, something to support.

"Happy ending."
"Sad ending."
"Predictable."
"Amazing."
"Overrated."
"Underrated."
"Warning: The dog doesn't live."
"Note: This book dares to be different."
"You'll wish you had written this book."
"You have to read this book."

Each person who checks out this book - that's this book, this challenged book, this book which will challenge you - should be allowed to put another sticker on the front cover. These stickers will depict their favorite symbols and characters. There will be labels that bear the names of readers. There may be scribbles that declare this book well-written and prove its readers discerning, appreciative, daring.

Then, even when the book is closed, the well-stickered cover will speak of its contents and its readers.

Then, even if They-with-the-capital-T remove the cover, the well-worn spine will speak of its chapters and its re-reads.

If the library were a beach, then each book would be a precious shell.

Hold this book up to your ear.

Can you hear the ocean?

Just Listen.

---

They Tried to Ban This Book Today, or,
There's a Sticker on the Cover of This Book
© Little Willow @ Bildungsroman

This piece was written on Friday, January 11th, 2008 as a response to this and that.

I was surprised and honored to find this piece linked at Beneath the Cover's Recommending Reading sidebar on Monday, January 14th, 2008. Thank you!

Please note: In speaking of the scene that caused the challenge, the article gives away a CRUCIAL part of the book. Also, the first line of this piece includes the word "ban" because it is part of a series about challenges, bannings, and censorship, and all of those pieces share the same opening line.

Check out the Just Listen roundtable with the postergirlz!

Open a book. Open your mind.

I honestly do not remember not knowing how to read. My earliest memory is from when I was two years old, and I was reading by then.

I am told that when my mother read to me, I would shut the book on our hands and say, "I want to do it! I want to read!" I wanted to do everything myself, and reading was no exception. She taught me straightaway, and I cannot thank her enough for encouraging my love of reading, of the written word, of writing, of communication. She also showed me how to use the dictionary, which I would use all of the time to find the perfect word or discover a definition.

Mom brought me to the library often. The librarian was initially reluctant to give a library card to such a little girl. I think my mother was told I could have a card if I could write my name on the back of the card, which I promptly did. I used that card for years and years. Every so often, a librarian would notice my signature - nicely crooked capital letters, kid print - and offer to get me a new card. I thanked them for the offer, but turned them down every time. Once, when my card broke in half horizontally, I simply asked for some tape. I still have that card and I'll never get rid of it.

My hometown library didn't used to have a limit on the number of books you could check out. Neither did my mom. She teased that I could check out as many as I could carry, so I would walk out of that place with books stacked up to my chin. Even though I'm all grown up now and use a different library card at a different library, I still walk out with a stack of books.

I am thankful every single day that such establishments allow me to check out books at no cost. I read a book a day, and there is no way I would be able to afford to buy a new book every single day. It is because of the library that I was and still am able to read as often as I'm able.

I now get books from other sources too, but I'm not in this - this book reviewing, this blogging, this Cybillian participation - for free books. I'm in it for the love of reading. I hope you are too. I am still amazed every time a book arrives for me at work. It's always a surprise. I love it when there no expectations, no pushing me to give it a good review, simply a note saying, "I hope you enjoy it," or, "I thought you'd like this." Thank you for the authors and publishers who send me books, especially those who do so out of the goodness of their hearts. Thank you to those who appreciate my time and my efforts.

If you find yourself surrounded by books that you've read or perhaps haven't the time or interest to read, please pass them on to your local library. Ask them first if they permit donations, and if they do, if they have any rules regarding the condition of the books or if they need certain types of books - age groups, genres, etcetera. Give books to people that will appreciate them and organizations that need them. Just imagine the little girl or boy who finds that donated book at the library, and how that book will be checked out over and over again.

---

And now for a library meme from Meme Girls!

( Read more... )

The Bermudez Triangle: Too Cool for School?
A report by Little Willow
Sponsored in part by The Edge of the Forest, the number 3, Kelly H., Angela N., and readers/viewers like you.

On March 4th, 2007, in Oklahoma, a book challenge was submitted to the school board of Bartlesville Public Schools in Oklahoma. Someone felt that a book had "no moral fiber" and asked for it to be removed "at once."

The book in question: The Bermudez Triangle by Maureen Johnson, a bestselling young adult novel about three best friends whose once-balanced triumvirate tips and shifts when two of the teens start secretly dating each other.

( Read more... )

IN SUMMARY

The Bermudez Triangle by Maureen Johnson is being challenged/banned at a high school in Oklahoma because some people are claiming that the book is full of naughtiness and naked encounters. These claims are unfounded. There's only kissing, and even that is minimal. Furthermore, banning this particular book, let alone any book, makes little to no sense to me, and I do not believe they should prohibit people from reading this book. My review of the book, written years ago, closes with this: "Once you're in THE BERMUDEZ TRIANGLE, you won't want to leave."

Do yourself a favor, gentle readers. Read the book. Think for yourself. Do not let the negative opinions of others cloud your judgment or sway your vote.

For the latest news, please visit Maureen's blog within her website and look for entries tagged Bartlesville.

Maureen's posts make people not only laugh, but take action. Her coverage of The Battle of Bartlesville has inspired people to write posts of their own about the matter, to read the book, to give the book to friends, to speak up, to speak out, to think, to consider, to question - to do something.

I can only hope this post of mine encourages people to do the same.


FOOTNOTES AND CROOKED TOES

( 1 ) Clio, you're right up there too, but your book, Girl at Sea, doesn't come out until June 2007. I promise to give you plenty of airtime at that time because you are tres cool.

( 2 ) I met John once a year ago. I know he knows of me online, and that he knows me as Little Willow, but I do not know if he remembers having met me. There were lots of fangirls present at the time.

( 3 ) Referring to the form filed against this book, which is called A Citizen's Request for Removal of Instructional Materials.

( 4 ) You don't want to make me scream. I'm loud. Just ask those who have brought up The Battle of Bartlesville with me in the past month.

SIGN THE PETITION

If you are from outside of Bartlesville and wish to show your support for The Bermudez Triangle and Maureen Johnson, please sign this petition!

If you are actually from Bartlesville or neighboring communities, please sign the local petition!

UPDATE

I interviewed Maureen Johnson in June 2007. The night before we spoke, she'd received some interesting news. Here's the scoop, directly from Maureen:

I got a note from the local librarian -- the woman who brought all of this to light and who resigned her position over this mess. We've been waiting for weeks and weeks to hear what the committee recommended about the book. They finally decided -- after being pummeled with letters from around the world, and after they were caught violating public policy by exceeding their authority and pulling the book without telling the public -- that Bermudez belongs on the 'reserve shelf.' You'll need parental permission to check it out for 'classroom purposes.' Plus, they want to have some kind of day each year where the parents come in and monitor the library. (This part of their letter was written in a strange way and hard to understand.) This has a bad sound to me. They seem to be suggesting -- and this is just what I'm taking from this -- that parents should come in once a year and see what they approve of. It sounds like they want to put more on the naughty shelf.

I didn't think they could make it worse, but they did. So, the book isn't banned -- you just need a note to look at it. Until then, you can't even get at it.

My response:

I always want to accentuate the positive in life because silver linings are SHINY. I try not to be wholly negative. So - deep breath - this is not a solution, not an equal/even compromise, but at least the book has not been completely banned or removed.

However, by not allowing patrons to freely check out and read the book, the powers that be are causing another series of problems and lies. In sixth grade, my teacher* wouldn't allow students to read Stephen King books without expressed written permission from their parents, so kids simply forged notes. My teacher was so busy creating and enacting that 'permission necessary' rule for the King books that she forgot about the existence of other books and authors, and my classmates snickered as they freely passed around Christopher Pike books with the naughtier passages marked.

* It should be noted that this was the same teacher who refused to believe I read dozens of books every month and graded my book reports very harshly. Let's not talk about her anymore.

My recent writings regarding The Baby-Sitters Club have made me nostalgic for the many series I read and collected when I was in elementary school.

When I was little, I would read almost everything I could get my hands on. I loved lengthy books and classics most of all, especially The NeverEnding Story and the Anne of Green Gables octet. I liked re-reading my favorite books, both those that I owned and those which I checked out of the library repeatedly, but I also wanted to read new stories. ( Read more... )

( That all being said, here is a partial list of the series I read in the 80s and early 90s. )