Tiny Treasury

And Tango Makes Three, a book about two male penguins parenting an egg topped the ALA’s list of most challenged books in 2006 by parents and administrators, due to homosexual themes. In fact, four of the top ten books were challenged due to homosexual content.

A challenge is defined as a formal, written complaint, filed with a library or school, requesting that materials be removed because of content or appropriateness.

The “10 Most Challenged Books of 2006″ are:

1, And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell;

2, Gossip Girls series by Cecily Von Ziegesar;

3, Alice series by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor;

4, The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things by Carolyn Mackler;

5, The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison;

6, Scary Stories series by Alvin Schwartz;

7, Athletic Shorts by Chris Crutcher;

8, The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky;

9, Beloved by Toni Morrison;

10, The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier.

It’s the War of Words Wednesday! Since next week starts the official “back to school” week for most schools in the US (I know that you folks in the Southern Hemisphere start first term in January), I thought I would focus on great school-themed books. Beverly Cleary is one of the best authors when it comes to capturing the spirit of first day angst, be it kindergarten or 3rd grade. So, today’s War of Words Wednesday is a battle of two Cleary books…

Which Beverly Cleary book reminds you most what it was like to be in elementary school?

Ellen Tebbits

or

Ramona the Pest

Beverly Cleary, school, Ellen Tebbits, Ramona the Pest

Click, Clack, Moo by Doreen Cronin is just wildly amusing, one of my favorite kids’ books. And it’s also one of my kids’ favorites because they can read along - the text is very simple (and witty!).

I was really glad to see this video clip on YouTube of the book being read aloud - with sign language.

You can download versions here from PBS - or order videos.

Those are just some of the questions that Sam, one of the main characters of Stella, Star of the Sea asks his big sister, Stella, in one of the most delightful children’s books in my home.

I didn’t buy this one, I’ll confess. My friend, Kristin, bought it for my daughter; my daughter’s middle name is Estella and Sam is Kristin’s son. The two are the best of friends and Kristin thought the book concept - of older girl Stella leading around young Sam - was fitting. It quickly became a favorite in the house, not just because of the names of the characters but also because of the poetic nature of the book. And by poetic, I’m not just referring to the imagery in the words and the cadence of the text, which is really lovely to read. I’m also referring to the illustrations which are absolutely beautiful - the illustrations are so soft and yet still stunning - that it takes your breath away. Really. And on each page, there’s a little story within the story. Your children will have fun exploring it.

The book is the first in a series by award-winning Montreal artist Marie-Louise Gay of Canada. Gay clearly captures the spirit of young children with her words and her illustrations. And you can’t find a more perfect example of that spirit than when Stella explains to Sam that starfish were once shooting stars “who fell in love with the sea.” Trust me when I say that you and your children will fall in love with this book.

Marie-Louise Gay, Stella

Okay, this I don’t get: one in four adults read no books at all in the past year, according to an AP-Ipsos poll. The survey went on to say that the typical person claimed to have read four books last year. Of those who had read at least one book, the usual number read was seven. Yet, 27% of people hadn’t read a single book in the last year.

Interestingly, folks from the West and Midwest are more likely to have read at least one book in the past year. Southerners who do read, however, tend to read more books, mostly religious books and romance novels, than people from other regions. Additionally, Democrats and liberals typically reading slightly more books than Republicans and conservatives.

I wonder whether this is an adult thing - or whether children pick up on this on a young age. So, here’s an informal poll: Did you read a book last year? If so, what genre? And more importantly, tying it into this blog, did your children read a book last year?

I was planning on continuing my series on place-specific books this week (I have the Mounties book in hand) but I ran across this post on a Gaming MMO and couldn’t help myself. It kind of goes to the heart of my posts from last week about censorship and banning.

Many of the commenters (including myself) criticized the parent’s failure to review the game before buying it. This is exactly the kind of logic that many librarians and school administrators use to justify book banning - that the parents aren’t doing their job.

What do you think? If this were a book instead of a video game, should the clerk have spoken up? Other parents? Would a ban prevent this kind of thing from happening?

Like you didn’t think the first place I’d pick would be Philadelphia…

I’m kicking my reviews of books this week that reference specific places - not just generally “in the city” or “on Generic Street, USA” - whether in title, text or setting. And the first book on my list is Good Night Philadelphia.

Good Night Philadelphia, authored by Adam Gamble and illustrated by Cooper Kelly, is part of the Good Night Our World series. Other books in the series include Good Night San Francisco, Good Night Atlanta and Good Night New York City. The premise of the series is, as you could imagine, “to celebrate special places in a way that young children… can easily relate to and enjoy with their families.”

And if Good Night Philadelphia is typical, the series more or less hits the mark. The book introduces the reader to places that are familiar to Philadelphians, though I’m not sure if those who haven’t spent a considerable amount of time in Philadelphia would quite understand or appreciate all of the spots chosen to “visit”.

The opening page missed the boat, I thought. Literally. There is a stretch of Philadelphia along the Schuylkill River (which no one outside of Philadelphia can pronounce) referred to as “Boathouse Row.” If you’ve been to Philly, you know Boathouse Row. And yet, the illustrations of Boathouse Row aren’t accompanied by any reference to it. Instead, the author says “Good morning, Schuylkill River” which is both difficult to pronounce if you aren’t familiar with it, and nearly impossible for new readers. Boathouse Row is simple - and the more common name for the stretch. I’m not sure whether this is a flaw because Gamble doesn’t know the area or if it was purposeful. But I didn’t think it a terribly good start.

After the opening pages, however, the book hits all of the right notes. The author makes stops along Philly’s notable tourist sites such as the Art Museum and Fairmount Water Works - and even stops to wonder what Rodin’s Thinker is thinking. There’s the obligatory mention of cheesesteaks (and thankfully not at Pat’s or Geno’s) as well as the Betsy Ross House and the Liberty Bell. The book is nicely illustrated - I thought the colors popped nicely and worked well with the board book format. I especially liked the crowd scenes, such as in Reading Terminal. It adds considerable interest to the book and encourages lots of finger pointing and question asking of the “Who’s that?” variety.

It’s short and sweet, as picture books - especially board books - should be. It’s a nice introduction to the City, and really does hit most of the main tourist attractions (what, no mention of our infamous sports teams?). I would definitely be inclined to pick up another in the series for my kids for the next time that we travel to New York City, Maine or any of the other places featured in the series. I agree that it’s a nice way to remember a trip without cheesy commercial references and at $9.95, it’s not priced badly either.

Philadelphia, Good Night Our World

I’ve been plowing through my books for review lately and I’ve noticed a trend: a number of them are place-specific, something that I got the feeling that the publishing companies generally avoided. But no, more and more, I’m noticing books about places - well, not necessarily “about” places but those that unabashedly reference a city, state or country by title or content. As a mom who travels, and who wants my children to understand more about the world around us, I love this idea.

So, this week, the focus is going to be on places. Stick around because I’ve got content on cities, countries - and oh yeah, stuff that’s out of this world!

And if you have a suggestion for a book that fits the bill, let me know in the comments below…

What would you buy with $300? Or even $200 or $100? Now is your chance to find out! Comment on any 451 Press site during the month of August and you could win! Three comments will be chosen at random to win a cash prize of $300, $200 or $100. The more you comment the more chances you have to win. So start reading and let those fingers fly.

At least not on Laura Mallory’s watch. And not in Loganville, Ga.

Laura Mallory, a mother of four in Loganville, Georgia, went to bat in 2006 to convince the Gwinnett County to ban all Harry Potter books from classrooms and school libraries. Despite the fact that Mallory has never read any of the books (perhaps the one thing that we have in common), she believes that the fiction series is an “evil” attempt to introduce children to witchcraft and the Wicca religion.

J.K. Rowling has previously responded to such allegations on CNN by saying:

I absolutely did not start writing these books to encourage any child into witchcraft. I’m laughing slightly because to me, the idea is absurd. I have met thousands of children and not even one time has a child come up to me and said, “Ms Rowling, I’m so glad I’ve read these books because now I want to be a witch.”

And yes, this is the same Gwinnett County whose library board initially eliminated $3,000 set aside to buy Spanish-language fiction after residents objected to using taxpayer dollars on books which might be read by illegal immigrants. Days later, the board reversed its decision amid accusations of racism.

But fortunately, the Gwinnett County board exercised some common sense here the first go round and refused to ban the Harry Potter series from its school libraries. Mallory next went to the Georgia County School Board, which likewise refused to ban the series. Not satisfied with that ruling, Mallory sued in Superior Court. In June of this year, she again lost her case to keep the series off of the shelves. Mallory is apparently considering an appeal to federal court, funded by donations from like-minded souls.

Parents in other states have staged less spotlight grabbing efforts to ban the series. The books have been banned successfully in Michigan and Arkansas.

Have any of you encountered attempts to ban the book? Do you think banning is an appropriate response? Do you agree with Mallory’s assertions that the dark behaviors in the book can lead to dark behaviors in real life, such as school shootings?

Harry Potter, book banning, censorship, J.K. Rowling, Laura Mallory, Gwinnett County

So here’s a twist on the War of Words Wednesday. Since we’ve been talking about censorship this week, I am interested to see which, of any, of these banned books you think should be removed from school libraries. This is a list of books subjected to banning in the US and UK which I compiled using information from the library at the University of Pennsylvania, The File Room Project and the American Library Association. The list includes books which have been deemed inappropriate for minors or students over time.

Hamlet, Macbeth, King Lear, Twelfth Night (use of adult language, sex, violence) - Shakespeare
Little Red Riding Hood (alcohol reference) - Brothers Grimm
Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn (racial slur) - Mark Twain
Forever (sexuality) - Judy Blume
Of Mice and Men (inappropriate language) - John Steinbeck
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (sexuality, adult language) - Maya Angelou
Harry Potter series (magic, witchcraft) - J.K. Rowling
The Great Gatsby (sexuality) - F. Scott Fitzgerald
Catcher in the Rye (adult language) - J.D. Salinger
The Color Purple (sexuality, violence, racism) - Alice Walker
Gossip Girl series (sexuality, drug use, adult language) - Cecily von Ziegesar
Charlotte’s Web (death, potentially offensive to Muslims) - E.B. White

Do you agree with any of these books being banned? If you don’t believe that banning is appropriate, should there be an age restriction on any of them?

Are any books missing from the list?

censorship, banned books, Catcher in the Rye, Gossip Girl, Charlotte’s Web, The Color Purple, Harry Potter, Shakespeare, Little Red Riding Hood, Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain, Judy Blume, Of Mice and Men, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, The Great Gatsby

Following up on yesterday’s post about The Higher Power of Lucky, and the continued controversy surrounding the book, here is a clip of the author talking about the book:

To publish a children’s book that incorporates the word “scrotum”?

Susan Patron, that’s who. You may recall that Ms. Patron won a the Newberry Award for her coming of age novel, The Higher Power of Lucky. However, because of the appearance of the word “scrotum” in the text of the book, many libraries chose not to stock the book.

Earlier this year, Ms. Patron had this to say in response to criticisms about her book:

“I wrote The Higher Power of Lucky for the 10-year-old who lives inside me. That girl was curious about everything and sometimes went to great lengths to get information about the world and how it works.

In writing The Higher Power of Lucky, I was interested in creating authentic characters who would ring true for readers. I wanted readers to trust that I respect them and would not talk down to them. Like the child-version of myself, Lucky eavesdrops on adult conversations; she is searching for a form of spirituality, a higher power.

I was shocked and horrified to read that some school librarians, teachers, and media specialists are choosing not to include the 2007 Newbery Medal winner in their collections because they fear parental objections to the word scrotum, or because they are uncomfortable with the word themselves. If I were a parent of a middle-grade child, I would want to make decisions about my child’s reading myself—I’d be appalled that my school librarian had decided to take on the role of censor and deny my child access to a major award-winning book. And if I were a 10-year-old and learned that adults were worried that the current Newbery book was not appropriate for me, I’d figure out a way to get my mitts on it anyway, its allure intensified by the exciting forbidden-ness—by the unexpressed but obvious fear on the part of these adults.

There’s a direct correlation between fear of naming body parts and kids’ interest in finding out about them. To figure out the world, children have to unscramble a mishmash of secrets, clues, overheard tidbits, half-truths, out-of-context information, and their own observations. The lucky ones discover the Robie Harris/Michael Emberley books, and/or they have access to parents or teachers or librarians who will answer their questions and define unknown words. The child who learns the definition of scrotum and other body parts in this way, through reading and talking with responsible adults, is armed with, for one thing, an alternative to finding answers through first-hand experience.

As regards 12-step programs, it seems there are also literature gatekeepers who are frightened that children may learn that these recovery programs exist.Do they think children are unaware that drug/alcohol/tobacco/gambling/overeating addictions are rampant in the U.S.? Many children, of course, know about addictions first-hand, through affected family members. Isn’t it useful for them to know that some adults choose recovery through a 12-step program? Isn’t it one of the truly heartening aspects of our culture that human beings can be this brave?”

I’ve been thinking about this quite a bit - especially in light of the Gossip Girl series that I mentioned earlier. Books - unlike television - are a little more difficult for parents to monitor. Should that responsibility fall to public and school librarians?

I know that, as a kid, I checked Jackie Collins and Danielle Steel (I was a child of the 80s) books out of the library without my mom knowing - or maybe she did know and chose to not make a big deal of it, who knows? And I didn’t implode into a million little pieces from reading them. I didn’t become trampy or run out and try drugs. In fact, I stayed a pretty good kid; trashy novels were probably my biggest vice.

As a parent, I will say that I don’t want my kids to be exposed to a lot of things before they have to be. In this day and age, information comes at our kids from all kinds of sources, fast and furious. And my gut instinct is to protect those children. But as a reader (and a writer), I personally don’t believe that censorship of a child’s reading material should be the job of anyone else but the child’s parent.

What do you think?

children, censorship, book, The Higher Power of Lucky, library, Susan Patron, Newberry Award

As previously reported, the Gossip Girls series will be make its debut on television this fall (September 19) on the CW. Lucky for us because many booksellers are promoting the book series with deep discounts in preparation for the show. This week, while on vacation, I picked up Only in Your Dreams (9th in the series) for less than $5 at Barnes and Noble. If you’re in the mood for some light summer reading - or know a teen that is (wink, wink) - check it out.

** I found the dialogue and talk about sex and drugs to be fairly mature, so I’d recommend this for older teens - not tweens. I don’t know that I’d want my junior high girls to be romanticizing pot and sex at this age…

Gossip Girl, CW, Only in Your Dreams

I’m on vacation this week (hence, the fewer posts). And nothing challenges you as a parent more than being trapped in a car for hours on end with restless children…

Enter the “I Spy� game.

You don’t need a book to play this game – remember it from when you were little? But with really small children, a book really helps. My three year old, for example, finds it difficult to look out of the window. And her “I Spy� options inside the car aren’t terribly noteworthy – they get old after a few minutes. But “I Spy� in a book? It’s brilliant.

My kids have “I Spy� from Disney’s Cars movie. Both kids are crazy about the movie – talking cars? Who knew? And the book is great. It is literally page after page of crazy illustrations that challenge the kids to find certain tires, oil cans and more. The best part? The kids aren’t finished after 5 minutes. They can play for hours – and find different things each time.

Next time that you’re planning a car trip, consider throwing one of these books in the car. Trust me, you’ll thank me later.