Another one for the librarians on my flist...

[yakalskovich]

A secret library in a school locker.

At least the censorship gets them reading.


But Canterbury Tales?? Really?

Comments

[yakalskovich]

Well, if that was their aim, they gloriously succeeded. But I fear there may really be schools that still ban 'Dorian Gray' and 'Catcher in the Rye'.

[idylchild.livejournal.com]

Yeah, that would be the great state of Texas.

[yakalskovich]

Er, what?? The entire state???

[lee-rowan.livejournal.com]

Texas has a gang of right-wing religionists that attack textbooks. This is because Texas is the BIGGEST textbook market. These clowns have seriously damaged science texts with their bullying -- and no one ever hears about it.

I have also read that Georgia public schools don't teach anything earlier than the Civil War -- the excuse being that they don't have time in the School year. I can just imagine how they present the Civil War.

Ignorance is going to destroy America. Deliberate, inculcated ignorance. It's easier to stampede people who don't know what's going on.

[yakalskovich]

From where I am, America does look partially destroyed to me already. And I am sure ignorance had a lot to do with it.

My friend brickling reports that anything she order from the US takes way longer than it used to, at least if it's coming in the mail, as the US Postal Service seems to be touched by the general crumbling of things -- for another example.

[julyflame.livejournal.com]

Huh. Can't be the entire state; my sister's reading Catcher in the Rye right now for her sophomore English class and I'm pretty sure we're still in Texas.

[yakalskovich]

Perhaps it's county by county? Lots of things are, as far as I know.

[julyflame.livejournal.com]

It's more likely to be district by district; but as far as I was aware, there were no banned books at the school libraries in the school district I went to school in, and I was a student volunteer since third grade and spent most of high school doing assistant librarian type stuff, including helping with ordering the books.

[yakalskovich]

I'll have to pass on that one to idylchild, as I've never been to Texas, let alone a school there.

[ceitfianna]

There's a reason one of librarians big holidays is Banned Books Week, its so effective, because challenges and banning can be really stupid.

[yakalskovich]

Yes, it is -- and it makes books that are required reading elsewhere more interesting because kids start asking themselves WHY these books are banned.

And read them voluntarily, in the process.

[bigfluffball.livejournal.com]

My brother did Catcher in the Rye for his GCSE text, without any great enthusiasm. So my parents read it so they could help him, declared that it was a load of rubbish, and got him one of those quick notes versions.

I don't think he did massively well in the exam...

[yakalskovich]

Had he known that it is Banned In Texas, then he might have shown more enthusiasm...