Banned books
Banned Books
This year I learned about Maus written by Art Spiegelman. Maus is a non-fiction depiction of the author as he interviews his father, a survivor of the Holocaust. I haven’t read Maus and know nothing about the author. Learning about Maus, I learned about the issue of banned books.
Growing up, I never thought of books being banned. During the summers of my youth, I spent a lot of time in the library blocks from my home. I had access to any book I wanted to read.
According to the American Library Association, individuals or groups can request a book be banned from a school curriculum or public libraries. Each year the ALA releases a list of those books. In 2022, Maus was on this list along with To Kill a Mockingbird, written in 1960 by Harper Lee. Mockingbird was required reading when I was in high school.
In high school, I loved my English classes and most of the literature that was required reading. We read works by Maya Angelou, Shakespeare, Ralph Ellison, William Golding and George Orwell to name a few.
As we reviewed reading assignments in class, the discussion revealed different perspectives of the students. Doing this exercise, I learned two people can read the same story but understand it differently.
When we read a story, we approach and digest it through the lens of our culture, what we’ve seen in media, family dynamic and other experiences.
As I matured, I understood the possibilities of reading to understand history, culture, individuals and so much more. Someone’s story may not be my experience but, it doesn’t make it less important or invalid. It will likely stir a curiosity in me to learn more to gain a better understanding. That is the beauty of storytelling.
Monitoring the evolving story around the banning of Maus and other books, I wondered if we are doing more harm than good. When I consider the group or person who wants Harper Lee’s classic banned, I wonder: What is in the text that makes it not suitable to be read by junior high or high school students? What is under the surface? Is it the use of racial slurs? Is it seeing a white man defending a black man on trial who is unjustly accused of rape? Is it seeing a black man sentenced to jail for a crime he didn’t commit? Do you not want your children to know these social ills exist? Are adults resistant to answering children’s questions because it challenges their own biases and beliefs?
My granddaughter was using a tablet when she was in diapers. If we are raising intelligent children who who grasp and naturally naviage a world of technology, let us encourage them to understand the tough aspects of history, culture and society. I believe we can encourage a generation to read and learn more about the world around us.
We live in a world with a history rooted in racism, sexism, and many other isms. Removing books with these themes from libraries does not erase history.
I am thankful to writers who creatively tell stories infused with hard topics to not only entertain but educate so we never forget. As the saying goes, the more you know, the more you grow.
