A review committee decided to keep Just Listen by Sarah Dessen in school libraries at Armwood High School in Tampa, FL. Some parents had challenged the book because they objected to its sexual themes and language. A review committee comprised of teachers, students, and parents voted unanimously to keep the book.

In Johnston County, NC the fight against book censorship continues. After parents objected to sexual themes in the book, How the García Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez, a review committee recommended that the book be returned to school libraries and classrooms. But a district committee disagreed, banning García Girls from schools throughout the district. In addition, the school board proposed using lists of previously challenged books to “weed out” potentially offensive material in school libraries.

-from American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression

December 06, 2007

The American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE) and the National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) have condemned a decision to remove two books from the ninth grade optional reading list at Westhampton Beach High School in Westhampton Beach, New York. On Tuesday, December 4, the Westhampton Beach Board of Education voted 4 – 3 to remove The Tenth Circle by Jodi Picoult and Cradle and All by James Patterson from a list of 300 books that students can use to select reading assignments. Some parents had objected to the inclusion of the books because of their sexual content.

“By its vote, the Westhampton school board has allowed a few parents to determine what other people’s children can read — that is censorship,” said ABFFE President Chris Finan.

Joan Bertin, executive director of NCAC, said the Westhampton Beach school board had opened itself to multiple, possibly conflicting demands. “While some parents object to books with sexual situations, others challenge books with religious or racial references or violent content. By preserving access to a wide range of materials, school officials protect the rights of students and their parents to make their own choices, based on their own views and values,” she said.

Here’s an update from American Bookseller’s Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE), the bookseller’s voice in the fight against censorship, about challenges they have been facing the last couple of months:

ABFFE Responds to Book Challenges

With the start of the school year, ABFFE is once again busy responding to book censorship incidents in schools and libraries. In the past month, ABFFE joined with the National Coalition Against Censorship in opposing challenges to Sandpiper by Ellen Wittlinger, challenged in Brookwood, AL; Tripping Over the Lunch Lady: And Other School Stories, edited by Nancy E. Mercado, challenged in York County, VA; Beach Music and The Prince of Tides both by Pat Conroy, challenged in Kanawha County, WV; The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier, challenged in Chicago, IL; and It’s Perfectly Normal by Robie Harris and Michael Emberley, challenged in Lewiston, ME. We are currently working on a response to challenges to The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman in Winchester, KY. In many cases, these challenges are brought to our attention by booksellers, who are frequently involved in the controversy.