It's really more "challenged" books, but then we lose the alliteration.
There was a time when I read things based on whether I was interested in them, or if a teacher assigned them, not really thinking about who had a problem with it.
This means that while I haven't really read any Henry Miller or Lady Chatterley's Lover, I have read most Judy Blume books.
I have not read Forever, but that wasn't deliberate. I just never came across it and didn't care enough to seek it out. I know Blume has meant a great deal to many young people, and I appreciate that, but I am fairly neutral.
I did read The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in school, and agreed with other friends that the challenges that claimed to be about the use of the N-word were really more about Jim's humanity, but there could be other books that would do that.
Lately, with so many ridiculous book challenges, I find myself irresistibly drawn to them. Every time I see an article about terrible corrupting influences, I have to read them.
They are often quite good. They do not fill with respect for those challenging them. And yes, libraries are the ones coming through for me, so I know that makes libraries a target. I will defend libraries to the death.
Adding these books may sidetrack my already ambitious reading goals, but it has been a good thing.
Anyway, here are some relatively recent reads:
Big Wig by Jonathan Hillman
A picture book about shyness, and how costumes can help you have confidence, but they are not the only things that help you have confidence. Yes, there is drag, though the wig does other things. Honestly, watching someone else exploring drag recently and finding it really affirming make this book seem more accurate.
GenderQueer: A Story From A Different Closet by Allan D. Hunter*
This one was actually the worst, but it was also the wrong one. I mean, yes, the memoir's author is not completely gender-conforming, and sexual acts are described, additional reading indicates the actual book was Maia Kobabe's Gender Queer: A Memoir. Obviously I need to read that soon.
https://www.oif.ala.org/oif/gender-queer-most-challenged-of-2021/
Hunter's book is not terrible, but he thinks he is more interesting than he is. The best illustration is that once he started figuring out his issue -- white guy who does not always fit masculine norms, but likes his body and attracted to women, and yes, he did face abuse for that -- he started pressing his manifestos on everyone, including somewhat prominent strangers. That was aggressive enough to get him institutionalize, but even then he could have avoided it by reading the papers he was signing or asking key questions. There are more insightful people out there, but he feels his book is needed, and maybe he's right. There should be lots of books.
It's Perfectly Normal: Growing Bodies, Changing Up, Sex, and Sexual Health by Robie H. Harris
https://www.npr.org/2014/09/21/350366435/it-may-be-perfectly-normal-but-its-also-frequently-banned
Your local school district protesters HATE this one, but it's really good.
If any of you have read Peter Mayle's Where Did I Come From?, this is like that, but for adolescents so with information on puberty. As a more modern book, it also does better at incorporating different body types, skin tones, and sexual orientations, though the edition I read could use some updating for transgender inclusion.
The reassuring (and true) title is pretty well honored by the book. If you believe that more information and affirmation is a good thing, this is a good book. If you hate that stuff...
Front Desk by Kelly Yang
https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/why-parents-tried-ban-childrens-book-143223253.html
I loved this one! There are now four books in the series, so more reading to look forward to, and I think it would make a great television series.
Complaints about the book that I saw focused on the portrayal of police being racist to a Black character at a hotel. That happened here not too long ago; it seems like fair game for a book.
Beyond that, the book is incredibly empowering as Mia finds solutions to help those around her, many of which come from author Kelly Yang's life. You can make a difference, even if you are young, or an immigrant, or poor, or scared. That's a great message.
Drama by Raina Telgemeier
(Maus was included in this "quarantine", but I read that back in 2012,)
The worst thing about this book is that the play the characters are working on is set during the Civil War, a time that needs no romanticizing.
Beyond that, the title is a clever wordplay for the characters actually acting, directing, and working on stage effects, but also having misunderstandings, crushes and emotions... drama!
The book also treats at least two homosexual characters (one definitely out, one questioning) as human, valid people, and Florida doesn't want that to happen.
Bone: Vol. 1 (Out of Boneville) by Jeff Smith
http://cbldf.org/banned-challenged-comics/case-study-bone/
I believe the issue here is that the most capitalist character is a jerk. Apparently there is some smoking and drinking in the 4th volume, and violence and horror in the whole series but especially in the 2nd volume.
Okay, there are rat creatures, and they are implied to be dangerous, but I haven't seen them get a single win, at least in the first volume. In the complaints of racism, the Bone cousins are super white, but there don't seem to be any negative depictions based on that. No, I think the issue is that greedy, wealth-obsessed Phoney Bone is a jerk, and it gets him ostracized from their society, dragging his cousins Fone and Smiley along with him. And even though the people who know Phoney do kick him out of town, his cousins still care about him.
How much deference do the capitalists need? Don't answer; that was rhetorical.
I'm not saying that banned books are automatically the best books, but there have been some good ones. If that makes sense because the people most likely to uphold racism, homophobia, and misogyny are pro-ignorance, well, the logic is easy to understand.
And if you like seeing what I think about books, let's connect on Goodreads:
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