The Most Challenged Books of 2002…

The Most Challenged Books of 2002

“Harry Potter series tops list of most challenged books four years in a row…. The ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom received a total of 515 reports of challenges last year, a 15 percent increase since 2001….

The ‘Ten Most Challenged Books of 2002’ reflect a wide variety of themes. The books, in order of most frequently challenged are:

• Harry Potter series, by J.K. Rowling, for its focus on wizardry and magic.
• Alice series, by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, for being sexually explicit, using offensive language and being unsuited to age group.
• “The Chocolate War” by Robert Cormier (the “Most Challenged” book of 1998), for using offensive language and being unsuited to age group.
• “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” by Maya Angelou, for sexual content, racism, offensive language, violence and being unsuited to age group.
• “Taming the Star Runner” by S.E. Hinton, for offensive language.
• “Captain Underpants” by Dav Pilkey, for insensitivity and being unsuited to age group, as well as encouraging children to disobey authority.
• “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain, for racism, insensitivity and offensive language.
• “Bridge to Terabithia” by Katherine Paterson, for offensive language, sexual content and Occult/Satanism.
• “Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry” by Mildred D. Taylor, for insensitivity, racism and offensive language.
• “Julie of the Wolves” by Julie Craighead George, for sexual content, offensive language, violence and being unsuited to age group.” [ALA, via The ResourceShelf

[The Shifted Librarian]

I had wanted to pre-order copies of the new Harry Potter book from Amazon for the libraries at Derek & Alex’s facilities, but their grandmother, a devout Christian, doesn’t want them reading those books. The boys have MUCH worse problems than Harry Potter!