The Higher Power of Lucky--written by a shock jock?!

Well, I realized today why I'm a public children's librarian and not a school media specialist (a.k.a. school librarian)--because I would have to deal with parents complaining about 1 word on a page, taken out of context, and also have to deal with other school media specialists who think the correct terminology for mammal anatomy is disgusting. Guess these folks did not take much biology!


In case you haven't read the current uproar about the 2007 Newbery Medal winner, The
Higher Power of Lucky, here goes:

The New York Times, Late Edition, 2/18/2007--Julie Bosman wrote:

"The word ''scrotum'' does not often appear in polite conversation. Or children's literature, for that matter.Yet there it is on the first page of 'The Higher Power of Lucky,' by Susan Patron, this year's winner of the Newbery Medal, the most prestigious award in children's literature. The book's heroine, a scrappy 10-year-old orphan named Lucky Trimble, hears the word through a hole in a wall when another character says he saw a rattlesnake bite his dog, Roy, on the scrotum.'Scrotum sounded to Lucky like something green that comes up when you have the flu and cough too much,' the book continues. 'It sounded medical and secret, but also important.'The inclusion of the word has shocked some school librarians, who have pledged to ban the book from elementary schools, and reopened the debate over what constitutes acceptable content in children's books. The controversy was first reported by Publishers Weekly, a trade magazine."And also in this article:
'' 'This book included what I call a Howard Stern-type shock treatment just to see how far they could push the envelope, but they didn't have the children in mind,' Dana Nilsson, a teacher and librarian in Durango, Colo., wrote on LM--Net, a mailing list that reaches more than 16,000 school librarians. 'How very sad.' ''

What seems sadder to this blogger is that children will be kept from enjoying and learning from this book. If the word "scrotum" is in a book and refers to a dog, why would the conversation (if one even developed) have to focus on human genitalia? And why would it be abnormal for a 10-year-old protagonist to wonder what this word means? I am amazed that school media specialists are wasting their time with this. The Higher Power of Lucky is a beautiful book, and it should be read by children far and wide. And the only people who should have the opportunity to stop any children from reading it are those children's parents--not school library media specialists. If a parent reads this book (and front to back, not just the first page!) and still finds it objectionable, it's reasonable that the parent intervene for the child. But not for all children. The school library media specialists who are keeping this book from entering their libraries or warning parents or putting it on a restricted shelf are doing no less than blocking education instead of furthering it.

These school library media specialists should ask themselves why they're in the business of education. And what's wrong with the word "scrotum?" If this book was truly trying to be SHOCKING, it would've used the slang term "balls" or another slang term that's even more adult.

If you wonder about why children might grow up with sexual hangups, think about this story, and also ponder what happened when "The Vagina Monologues" was produced in Atlantic City, FL:
(From http://www.local6.com/spotlight/10962054/detail.html)

A modified marquee in which "Hoohaa" replaced a word in the title of a play after a driver complained about finding the previous wording offensive continues to draw attention.

The marquis for Atlantic Theaters advertises a number of plays including, the Masquerade Ball, Band Jam, and now The Hoohaa Monologues.

Some said hoohaa is a strange word and that its definition depends on its context, while others said it sounds like a country band, according to the WJXT-TV report.

However, it's not a band at all. In fact, most people know hoohah by a different name -- vagina, WJXT-TV reported.

"We got a complaint about this play The Vagina Monologues," said Bryce Pfanenstiel, of the Atlantic Theater.

The Hoohah Monologues is a replacement title for The Vagina Monologues -- a well-known play about that part of the female body.

"We decided we would just use child slang for it. That's how we decided on Hoohah Monologues," Pfanenstiel said.

They did this after a driver who saw it complained to the theater, saying she was upset that her niece saw it.

"I'm on the phone and asked 'What did you tell her?' She's like, 'I'm offended I had to answer the question."

People, here's how it works: Children are curious and will ask questions. We need to answer their questions in a mature, responsible way. Children will only NOT ask questions if they are placed in a dark hole, unable to interact with the world.

For those of you who would like to do that, maybe you should get your head out of your h...

Until next time...

I'm down on Spelldown

Okay, so I'm not sure who this book was written for. Adults? I think so, because I don't envision a lot of 10 and ups reading this--at least not a lot of 10, 11 & 12 year olds. It's not a bad book--it just isn't as smart as it thinks it is (kind of like Karlene). The book is marketed to ages 10 and up, yet it refers to groups and music from 1969, and the author focuses on the spelling champ's coming of age, her desire to win, and her pain and confusion about her father's drunkenness. Karlene, our heroine, is smart, and of course she's sassy & strong, but something about the book just falls flat. And yet PW and SLJ loved it. I sometimes wonder if the reviewers read the entire book, cover to cover. I do admit that I'm glad I read the entire book-the writing is strongest closer to the end, when Karlene competes in the National Spelling Bee in Washington DC. This is when I started paying more attention & rooting for her.

PW gave it a starred review and the reviewer wrote: "Readers will revel in the heroine's much heralded public victories, yet her private triumphs—among them a longed-for first kiss from a kind older boy and her reunion with her father at a treatment center—are even more moving and memorable. Peppering her narrative with copious references to '60s songs (Karlene observes that a sad teacher "probably keeps her face in a jar by the door like Eleanor Rigby"), Luddy has composed a resonant, applause-worthy work of fiction."

And the SLJ reviewer wrote: "Fans of Akeelah and the Bee will enjoy this literate and moving tale and its audacious and endearing protagonist. This book is a natural fit for those bright, verbal readers who frequent the library. With chapters introduced by story-related vocabulary words, it celebrates the music of the era, the flavor of the South, and the magic of words to empower young people."

My take on Spelldown is that it's my failing as a reader that I can't see the worth of this book. Whether it's Karlene's personality or the writing, I am not the intended reader of Spelldown, and that's okay. Spelldown will have other fans. It just didn't speak to me.

Last thought/pondering about this book--when publishers decide what ages to market a book to, do they include a broad range so that they will conceivably make more money on the book? Spelldown is very obviously a tween/teen book, with Karlene cursing, making references to songs about sex, Karlene's teacher talking about sex with Karlene, and Karlene's first sense of her sexual power.

So if a publisher says a book is for 10 & up, most of us children's librarians would put the book in our Juvenile Fiction sections. But if we read the book and realize that the mindset is more mature (see p.147--"I drop the needle on my favorite Zombies record, 'Time of the Season,' and stretch out on my bed to enjoy the deep throbbing feeling the song gives me. The drummer sounds like he's having sex with himself and playing all his percussion instruments at the same time." [That's funny--an adult will probably laugh out loud at that--but will a 10 year old? So who's she writing this for?] Many of us (including myself) would reclassify the book as Teen. And if a 10 year old is interested in books in the Teen section, she should be allowed to peruse and read the Teen books.

Would this be considered censorship? What do you think? If there are any children's librarians out there who have read this book, where would you put it in your collections? Would you market this to your 10 year olds? And I'd love to hear from someone in publishing--who decides the age range, and how is that decision made?

Welcome!

Dear biblioaddicts--

I've got my head stuck in a book or a magazine so much that I am a little behind on blogging & technology--so this is how I'm going to catch up--this is my little experiment and learning tool. I got the idea to start this blog from Meredith Farkas' article in the February 2007 American Libraries about "Learning 2.0"--a learning initiative started at the Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County in North Carolina. Each staff member involved in Learning 2.0 started a blog, which gave them insight not only into how to blog (and it's SO easy!) but also how to download a picture for the blog and also an audio clip. So I'll be adding a picture and an audio clip soon.

I have been feeling very time-challenged by being a new mom, but I think it'll be really fun to share info & excitement about books and info, and I pledge to keep up w/ 2-3 posts per week, if not daily posts.

Thanks for visiting!

I'm currently reading:

Spelldown: The Big-Time Dreams of a Small-Town Word Whiz by 1st time novelist Karon Luddy, for readers 10 and up, published by Simon and Schuster.

Feedback so far--Not loving it. Feeling a little down, in fact--wondering if other readers get a little tired of brilliant young characters who sound like little sociologists--challenged by life, yet able to be so wise and introspective, staring at sunsets and thinking about their beauty. My cynicism is coming out as I read this book--Karlene (8th grade protagonist from Red Clover, SC) is a little too sassy (ugh--this word is used in the bookjacket blurb) for my taste--and of course the book is set in 1969 (NOTHING happened then, right?), and is about spelling bees. I'm hoping it will get better and ring truer...I'll keep you posted...

Spelldown makes me think about a superior book that I read recently--the 2007 Newbery Medal book, The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron. Lucky doesn't shout out its purpose the way this one does--doesn't seem like an amalgamation of popular topics, but shows (instead of tells) a girl who's bright and questions her life. The reader is trusted to figure out deeper meaning on her own, through the events, conversations and thoughts of the protagonist. I have to say, I'm a reader who enjoys it when her intelligence is trusted, and I especially appreciate this in children's and teen literature. (And good job to the 2007 Newbery Committee!)