What makes a book challenged or to be put on the banned list?
First, you should keep in mind that there is no “banned books list” in the United States – books can only be challenged and removed from the shelves of a local school or library system. There are many reasons that a concerned parent might challenge a book, but it generally comes down to the idea that the content is somehow inappropriate (because of racist language, depictions of sexuality, being strongly pro- or anti-religion, etc) for public consumption. We are lucky to live in a country where books are indeed protected by the First Amendment. Even if a book is removed from our local library, we can still buy it at a store or find it in another location. But, even better than pulling a book from the shelves would be having a frank discussion about it with children at a developmentally inappropriate level. A parent might ask, “What about this book reflects the values of our family? What doesn’t reflect our values?” and open up a conversation about beliefs, morality, and the fact that o
