I Like Banned Books and I Cannot Lie

 There have been lots of reports of fights over books in schools this past year. Whether it’s Dr. Seuss or school districts in Texas or Pennsylvania, the goal is the same. Censorship. Censorship is something I feel very strongly about.  So much so that I wrote a paper about it. When we ban books, we are denying free speech.  But beyond that we are also denying ourselves and our children of an opportunity to not only learn about things that we don’t have direct experience with but also the opportunity to talk about these things. 

Two books that I have learned the most from are on the list of books that are the most challenged.  The Hate U Give and All American Boys. I am a middle-aged white woman, therefore, I see the world through the eyes of a middle-aged white woman. Books can give me a glimpse through a window into a world I don’t understand because I don’t experience the world in that manner. For example, before I read The Hate U Give, I assumed that if you sold drugs you were a criminal and therefore a bad person. I never stopped to think about why someone might be selling drugs. While there are some who chose to do that, there are others who are in such a state of desperation that they feel they have no choice. For example, a character in the book lived with his grandmother who lost her job in a hospital because she had cancer and could no longer perform all aspects of her job. So, the character, a high schooler, had to support his family and make sure his grandmother could get the care she needed. He worked in a supermarket but with that job he could afford to feed his family or keep the electricity on. Selling drugs, he could afford both. 

If you are not faced with a scenario like this, you can’t understand it.  I’m not saying even now that I understand what that level of desperation is like but at least through The Hate U Give, I got a glimpse into that world and can see that there are lots of gray areas and empathy is needed in these situations. They aren’t as cut and dry as I originally thought.  If this book is banned, how will anyone ever learn that lesson?  

In honor of banned books week this week, I will close with a quote from Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. from his report on the case U.S. v. Schwimmer in 1928.  He wrote, “If there is any principle of the Constitution that more imperatively calls for attachment than any other it is the principle of free thought - not free thought for those who agree with us but freedom for the thought that we hate.”  This philosophy is something that we should keep in mind now as unpopular opinions, points of view, books and even scientific studies are being censored.  Nothing can do more harm to our society than censorship.  

An Invisible Thread

 Another book talk today. This time I’ll be discussing An Invisible Thread by Laura Schroff. 

This is a non-fiction book, about a business woman in New York City developing a friendship with a disadvantaged pre teen begging for money on the street.  Maybe it is because I’m from New York and was growing up there at the same time this story was unfolding but it really hit home for me.  Many times walking in New York I have seen the people begging for money and just walked past them as Laura initially did.  The difference is that Laura stopped.  She turned around and she offered to take young Maurice to dinner.  

Maurice would later say that that one action saved his life but Laura would say it saved her life as well.  This book follows the friendship of Laura and Maurice across decades.  It delves into the heart and soul of what it was like growing up in New York City with drug addict parents.  The book also talks about Laura growing up on Long Island with an abusive father.  

At the heart, this book is about families.  The ones you are born into and the ones you make for yourself.  This is not just a feel-good book although there are plenty of those moments in the book.  This book tackles not only surviving family situations but situations that could damage the friendship of Laura and Maurice.  It is a stark look at reality and how we can use our differences to either divide or unite us.

Book Talk

 I need to start practicing my book talks so I’m going to use this forum to discuss books that I’ve read. I just finished reading Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid. I’ll start by saying this book was not at all what I expected.  The premise of the book that I went in with is that a babysitter is accused of kidnapping while on the job at a grocery store. That happens in the beginning but that starts a chain reaction pitting two old flames against each with the babysitter stuck in the middle. 

Emira is out celebrating her friend’s birthday when she gets a call from her boss, Mrs. Chamberlain asking her if she could take her daughter, Briar out for a little while.  Emira takes Briar to a grocery store around the corner to hang out for a little bit.  While they are there, a customer alerts a security guard that something may not be right.  You see Emira is black and is dressed for a night out with friends and Briar is white and from an affluent neighborhood.  The security guard harasses Emira while another customer records the scene on his phone.  Emira is eventually cleared of any wrongdoing.  

A few days later, Emira encounters the customer who recorded the event, Kelley, on a train.  Maybe I read too many thrillers but I kept thinking in the back of my mind that this was not a chance encounter.  

As it turns out, Kelley and Mrs. Chamberlain (Alix) have issues with each other from the past.  When Emira and Kelley start dating, that starts a tug of war between the old flames over Emira.

This was not at all what I expected.  I kept expecting a more sinister plot twist.  In the end it is just two misguided adults trying to influence a young woman on their way of thinking.  Maybe if the characters were more likable I would have been more emotionally invested but after the grocery store scene the rest of the book seemed to fizzle out for me.  I found it realistic and I was sad to realize that it is realistic but the book itself climaxed in the early pages.