Keep Your Hands Off My Books!

Top ten frequently challenged children’s books and reasons why

1. The Merriam Webster and the American Heritage Dictionaries-Defines oral sex ,unsuited to age group
2. Sylvester and the Magic Pebble by William Steig-Portrays policemen as pigs
3. Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin Jr.-Author has same last name as an obscure Marxist theorist. Nobody bothered to see if they were the same person. Pssstt…their not.
4. James And The Giant Peach-Ronald Dahl-Obscenity and violence
5. Twilight (series) by Stephenie Meyer-Sexually Explicit, Religious Viewpoint, Unsuited to Age Group
6. Witches by Ronald Dahl-Sexism and devaluing the life of a child.
7. The Diary Of A Young Girl by Anne Frank-Sexually explicit and homosexual themes.
8. Little Woman by Louisa May Alcott-Offensive to feminism(character marries a much older very boring man)
9. A Light In The Attic by Shel Silverstein-Promotes disrespect, horror, and violence.
10. A Wrinkle In Time by Madeleine L’Engle-Promotes religion,magic overtones,disobedience

*I have read myself and read to my child every one of these books.*
** Reasons stated for challenges and banning are not mine and do not reflect my own thoughts and opinions.**

When petit vogue asked me if I’d like to guest blog I was very flattered. What to talk about? Fashion, kids, home, life, books? Yea…books. :)
When I wrote this it just so happened to be National Banned Book Week so I decided to talk about books. Banning books to be exact. I’m not trying to start a free for all nor offend anyone. I just want to talk about books. Children’s books and my thoughts on censorship.

Banned books are a sore subject with me. As an avid reader and book reviewer I do tend to get a little perturbed when I am informed that someone I usually do not know and would probably never want to know has deemed it necessary to take mine and my child’s freedom of choice away by banning a book. While I can understand the need to monitor your child’s reading material-at what point are you doing your child a disservice taking all literature out of their hands that have a word or  subject that makes you uncomfortable? To often we coddle our children, wrapping them in metaphorical bubble wrap until they are 18 at which time we then rip off the protection and expect instant maturity. By narrowing your child’s experiences to match your own limited views, you restrict them. While we don’t have to subject our child to all the evil in life, it won’t go away by ignoring it either. If you cannot have faith in yourself, at least have faith in your child. As a parent myself, I do monitor what my child reads. But only my child. I would never presume to know what is best for your child and I resent the fact that you do not give me the same courtesy.

“Not every book is right for each reader, but we should have the right to think for ourselves and allow others to do the same,” said ALA President Roberta Stevens. “How can we live in a free society and develop our own opinions if our right to choose reading materials for ourselves and our families is taken away? We must remain diligent and protect our freedom to read.”

Unlike me, my child stays within her age level for reading. One way she does this is through her school library. The school has color coded dots on each book. Certain colors demote certain grades and age levels. My child is considered a blue dot. Should she want to check out something in a higher age level then I have to send approval by written note to the librarian. I like this option. It makes the choice MINE and HERS which is how it should be. She recently wanted to read Harry Potter and The Sorcerer’s Stone. Her library doesn’t carry it due to 1 *GASP* parent’s complaint. I bought her the whole set and sent the first one to school for her to read. Am I thumbing my nose at the parent? Certainly not. What I am doing is asserting my right and my child’s right to read what she wants. VERY IMPORTANT POINT here.  Banning books doesn’t STOP people from reading them. It just makes them pursue other avenues in which to procure said item.

As I was saying, my child reads age appropriate (by choice) while I have always read beyond my age group.  By the time I was her age, 9, I have already read Huckleberry Finn & Tom Sawyer. By 10 I had read Flowers in the Attic by VC Andrews & Forever by Judy Blume. By 12, it was Alice’s Diary by Anonymous. The best gift I ever received from my mother was she told me to read what I wanted but to always remember she was there if I needed to talk about it. She also reminded me that unless the book was non fiction, the story I was reading was NOT real and to treat it as such. By reading these books I gained an appreciation for the classics and also gained an appreciation for those different from me. By reading Tom Sawyer I never once had the urge to become racist. A Wrinkle In Time didn’t have me questioning my religion. Nor did James And The Giant Peach suddenly pepper my speech with curse words.

Oscar Wilde said it best when in he said, “The books that the world calls immoral are the books that show the world its own shame.” So ask yourself why, and be honest, the next time you find a book offensive. The answer my surprise you.

Thank you Tori for a for today’s guest post!  Read more of Tori’s book reviews and musings on her book and fashion blog