Once again, the true story of two male penguins raising a chick together is deemed so dangerous that children should not be allowed to learn of it. According to the American Library Association:
Justin Richardson’s and Peter Parnell’s "And Tango Makes Three" tops the list of the American Library Association’s (ALA) Top Ten List of the Most Frequently Challenged Books of 2010. The list was released today as part of the ALA’s State of America’s Libraries Report.
"And Tango Makes Three" is an award-winning children’s book about the true story of two male Emperor Penguins hatching and parenting a baby chick at New York’s Central Park Zoo. The book has appeared on the ALA’s Top Ten List of Frequently Challenged Books for the past five years and returns to the number one slot after a brief stay at the number two position in 2009. There have been dozens of attempts to remove And Tango Makes Three from school and public library shelves. Those seeking to remove the book have described it as "unsuited for age group," and cited "religious viewpoint" and "homosexuality" as reasons for challenging the book.
Off the list this year are such classics as Alice Walker’s "Color Purple"; "To Kill A Mockingbird" by Harper Lee; "Catcher in the Rye" by J.D. Salinger; and Robert Cormier’s "The Chocolate War." Replacing them are books reflecting a range of themes and ideas that include "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley; "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian" by Sherman Alexie; "The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins; and Stephenie Meyer’s "Twilight."
I hereby register my official and complete lack of surprise that Brave New World and Barbara Ehrenreich's Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By In America have made the list this year. Where is Captain Underpants when you need him?
For two of the books on the list, "homosexuality" is frankly stated as a reason to challenge the book.
The American Library Association's list of Top 10 Most Challenged Books is at the ALA's website.
The official Banned Books Week website invites participation through their Virtual Read-Out project and dedicated YouTube channel. The Banned Books Week website also includes other ways to participate, so check it out.
A number of readers here have mentioned Suzanne Collins's The Hunger Games; I haven't gotten to it yet, but it is now among the ALA's most-challenged books. Did any of your favorite books make the list?
Related: Banned Books Week 2010, Banned Books Week 2006, "No, God hates morons!"*, Harry Potter and the Half-Brained Dumbass, But What About My Needs?, A Novel Approach, and march of the dumbasses.
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