SPRINGDALE — The city library will not pull a book from its shelves during Banned Book Week.
The Springdale Library Board voted unanimously Tuesday to deny a request to remove a book about sex education, “It’s Perfectly Normal.”
“It is a targeted book,” said Marcia Ransom, library director. “It deals with hot-button issues.”
Those issues include homosexuality, masturbation and birth control, Ransom said. The library has copies in its young adult section and another in its parenting section, said Claudia Driver, reference librarian.
Banned, Challenged Books
The books challenged by patrons or banned from libraries across the United States from 2000 to 2009.
• Harry Potter series
• Alice series
• “The Chocolate War”
• “And Tango Makes Three”
• “Of Mice and Men”
• “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings”
• Scary Stories series
• His Dark Materials series
• ttyl, ttfn, l8r g8r series
• “The Perks of Being a Wallflower”
• “Fallen Angels”
• “It’s Perfectly Normal”
• Captain Underpants series
• “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn”
Source: The American Library Association website
The decision comes during the American Library Association’s Banned Book Week, which runs from Sept. 22 to Sept. 28.
The library received a request from MaryGrace Alexander on June 26 to remove the book. Alexander is from Rogers but has a Springdale library card since her husband works in that city, according to her request.
Staff research on the book delayed the board hearing the request from June until Tuesday, Ransom said. The staff found numerous libraries in nation and the region had the book, she said.
The entire book or portions of the book have been recommended by several churches to use as a reference when talking to children about sex, Ransom said. Those include the Lutheran Church and the Church of Christ, she said.
The book was first published in 1994, according to the American Library Association. Written by Robie Harris and illustrated by Michael Emberley, the book has been translated into 30 languages. The book answers questions children may have as they go through puberty, according to the Library Association.
The book has been challenged as appropriate for its age group since it was published, with opponents calling the drawings in the book sexually graphic, according to Marshall University’s Banned Book list.
Alexander, in her request, stated the book seems to be propaganda and pornographic in nature. The book doesn't seem to meet the legal definition of pornography, Ransom said.
A Fayetteville parent objected in 2005 to the book being in the Holt Middle School library, where it was held in the parents section, according to news reports from The Morning News and Northwest Arkansas Times. “It’s Perfectly Normal” was one of three books Laurie Taylor asked the Fayetteville School Board to remove from school libraries.
The books are sexually explicit and pornographic, Taylor said, according to the reports. Fayetteville's School Board appointed a committee to review “It’s Perfectly Normal” with the group recommending the book remain in libraries in March 2005.
The book does not reflect Christian values, stated the challenge.
The book is secular, Ransom said, but the library does have books that include the Christian point of view.
“We aim for diversity in our collection,” Ransom said.
At A Glance (w/logo)
Banned, Challenged Books
The books challenged by patrons or banned from libraries across the United States from 2000 to 2009.