By Katy Sweeny
A mother appealed to the Santa Rosa City”s School Board of Education Wednesday to remove the book “The Tortilla Curtain” by T.C. Boyle from the high school reading list because she considered it to have strong language, racism and sexual content.
The back of “The Tortilla Curtain” outlines the book as: “Topanga Canyon is home to two couples on a collision course. Los Angeles liberals Delaney and Kyra Mossbacher lead an ordered sushi-and-recycling existence in a newly gated hilltop community: he a sensitive nature writer, she an obsessive realtor. Mexican illegals C?ndido and Am?rica Rinc?n desperately cling to their vision of the American Dream as they fight off starvation in a makeshift camp deep in the ravine. And from the moment a freak accident brings C?ndido and Delaney into intimate contact, these four and their opposing worlds gradually intersect in what becomes a tragicomedy of error and misunderstanding.”
School districts should not ban books, especially those that bring forth social commentary on the evils of racism, apathy and mistreatment of women.
It”s true that one can find material to back up any opinion online, but here are some snippets of reviews.
“This highly engaging story subtly plays on our consciences, forcing us to form, confirm, or dispute social, political, and moral viewpoints,” reported The Booklist review. “This is a profound and tragic tale, one that exposes not only a failed American Dream, but a failing America.”
“The inestimably gifted Boyle (“The Road to Wellville,” 1993) puts on a preacher”s gown and mounts the pulpit to proclaim a hellfire sermon against bigotry and greed in this rather wan updating of ?The Grapes of Wrath,”” reported Kirkus Reviews, which also called the book a lemon.
Lemons aside, current social commentary in literature enlightens students rather than turning people racist as Liz Franzel said in a letter to her daughter”s high school teacher.
The list of banned and challenged books in the United States is enormous.
“The Grapes of Wrath” by John Steinbeck happens to be a frequently banned and challenged book, according to the American Library Association. “Charlotte”s Web” by E.B. White, “The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald and “The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger also top the list of banned and challenged classics. “And Tango Makes Three,” a true story picture book about two male penguins who raise a baby penguin in the New York City”s Central Park Zoo and “The Kite Runner” made the top-10 challenged book list for 2008.
Many of the classic challenged books were required reading in my high school, which I fortunately read and discussed in class. All students should have that chance.
People usually challenge books with the good intention of protecting children from difficult ideas and information, according to the American Library Association.
“Censorship can be subtle, almost imperceptible, as well as blatant and overt, but, nonetheless, harmful,” the association reported.
For the Santa Rosa book challenge, a review committee of a library media teacher, teachers from three of the schools that taught the book, a school administrator and two district office administrators read the book and found the book should “? continue to be accessible to all high schools in appropriate grade levels with the following guidelines: The teacher must appropriately prepare students for the parts of the book that may be considered provocative. Limit the availability to juniors and seniors. Should a parent object to the book, board policy is currently in place that allows a student to be excused from the book assignment and provides for an alternate assignment without penalty to the student.”
Hopefully the board follows the review committee and not the angry mother.
My mom worked as an elementary school librarian for 14 years in my hometown of Galt and now works at a public library. Parents challenged three books, banning one, while she worked in Galt. At the book-banning meeting, my mom rolled in a wheelbarrow of children”s books prohibited in some U.S. schools. A board member made the banning vote of “Don”t You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey” based on the movie rating system, not on its literary content. My mom cried.
If parents or community members don”t appreciate the content of a book they can choose not to read it and discuss that reasoning with their children and friends but they should not limit the education of all students in a district.
Support knowledge and freedom, not book burning.
“Restriction of free thought and free speech is the most dangerous of all subversions. It is the one un-American act that could most easily defeat us.” ? Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas
Katy Sweeny is a staff reporter for the Record-Bee. She can be reached at ksweeny@record-bee.com or 263-5636, ext. 37.
