Noticed something weird at the library in my town last month

I stopped into the public library in Springfield to return some books and saw a whole display of banned books. But the thing is, none of them were the classics you hear about like Huckleberry Finn or Catcher in the Rye. It was all newer stuff like graphic novels and books about gender identity. I asked the librarian about it and she said the display was because someone tried to get three books removed from the children's section. She couldn't tell me who complained but it got me wondering how often stuff like this happens in small town libraries. Has anyone else run into a situation like this where a book got challenged in your local library?

2 comments

2 Comments

taylor_fox13d ago

I always wonder if the same people who challenge books are the ones who never actually read them. Libraries are supposed to be a safe place for everyone, not just the loudest complainers. It's wild how graphic novels get targeted so often, as if pictures somehow make ideas more dangerous than big fancy words. If a book on gender identity is in the children's section, it's there because a librarian thought it was appropriate. Maybe I'm just out of touch, but I thought we were supposed to encourage kids to ask questions, not hide the answers.

lisat6013d ago

Graphic novels get challenged more because people are scared of pictures showing things words could dance around.