Another great post! I really appreciate the research you're putting into these posts. And in every single case, the challenge (and the grounds on which it is / was based) clearly says a whole lot more about the people mounting it than about the books themselves ...
Great post! All of it is food for thought, but I have to say I got a big laugh over the reasons for Judy Blume's Forever being banned. Admittedly, there are ages that it would be inappropriate for, but I loved the part about it putting "ideas" in their heads. Because we all know teenagers would never think about sex without a book to give them ideas. Hahaha
Yeah, as if a book could give them ideas. I bet they hear about worse stuff from their classmates. Though I have heard of teens carrying around VC Andrews books and treating them like the holy grail of sexy times and those books (the ones I've read) were never that explicit. Everyone's idea of explicit is different though.
Know your kids, know what they are consuming. Banning books is going to make kids (or anyone) do more to find and read/watch whatever was banned. Anyways when I was a kid (13/14ish) I skipped over sex in books. My grandma gave me a bunch of harlequin books. Not sure if she knew the content or forgot I was a kid.
I don't remember the VC Andrews books being that explicit either. If memory serves, it was more the insinuation than the details. Thinking back, I don't remember books being as explicit when I was a teen/young adult as they are now. Maybe it was just the books I was reading, but they were more steamy light in today's terms than scorching hot sexy.
Yeah, as if a book could give them ideas. I bet they hear about worse stuff from their classmates. Though I have heard of teens carrying around VC Andrews books and treating them like the holy grail of sexy times and those books (the ones I've read) were never that explicit. Everyone's idea of explicit is different though.
Know your kids, know what they are consuming. Banning books is going to make kids (or anyone) do more to find and read/watch whatever was banned. Anyways when I was a kid (13/14ish) I skipped over sex in books. My grandma gave me a bunch of harlequin books. Not sure if she knew the content or forgot I was a kid.