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Here is the text of my message to the Star-Gazette. Somehow, my last post turned up as a HUGE link to the Star-Gazette's web article. Dear Ms. Costello, I expect that you will receive many responses to your column in the online edition of the Star-Gazette. I respectfully add my voice to the cacophony. It's easy to bandy about terms such as "scores of librarians," and "banned....from numerous libraries across the country, " and "most libraries and bookstores automatically order at least two copies of each year's Newbery Medal-winning children's books (emphasis mine)." But these statements are nebulous at best and irresponsible journalism at worst. Who are the "scores" of librarians? Have you talked to multiples of twenty librarians who will be banning The Higher Power of Lucky from their libraries? Have you found hard evidence that "numerous libraries across the country" are "banning" this book? Or have you become caught up in the hyperbole that first appeared in a New York Times article that extrapolated exaggerated figures from a small discussion on a professional school librarians' mailing list (LM_NET), and which now threatens to give lie to the very real respect that librarians have for intellectual freedom and the right of children to read whatever they and their parents feel is appropriate? Before the exaggerations, stereotypes, hyperbolic accusations, and outraged protests run away with us, let me tell you what a real librarian thinks. I am a middle school Library Media Specialist. I serve a school of seventh and eighth grade students in suburban Fairfield County, Connecticut. I have a limited book budget. I try very hard to take many things into consideration when selecting fiction books for my students. Perhaps the first criteria I look at is interest level. Will this book be read by students in my school, or will it languish on the shelves for lack of interest? I want to choose books, first and foremost, that my kids will READ. I check reviews in respected professional journals such as School Library Journal, Voya, Horn Book, among others. I choose books that are at the appropriate reading level for my students, which means that I purchase some books that are on the lower middle-school level (where Higher Power of Lucky seems to fall), and some that are written for the mid-high school level. I do take into consideration whether a book is an "award winner", but I DON'T automatically purchase "at least two copies of each year's Newbery Award winning book." I don't know any librarians who do so. We select. We discriminate. We weigh our options. We consider our budgets and our patrons' needs and desires. We buy some books that are popular but might not be considered great literature by the arbiters of literary taste. We also purchase some books that are wonderfully written and will withstand the test of time (modern classics, if you will). I am not intimidated by anatomical terms in fiction books. I do not shy away from books with controversial themes, such as family dysfunction, alcoholism, gambling, or drug abuse, which are prominent in Higher Power.... I've been known to select books for my library that have some pretty raw language, much edgier than that found in this year's Newbery winner. I make my collection development decisions on a variety of criteria, but I will not automatically order a book because it carries a gold sticker on its cover. Ms. Costello, I don't know how many librarians you've spoken to lately. I don't know if you hold the stereotype of the bun-wearing, sensibly-shod, shuusher of lore. I don't want to fight the stereotype. I'm tired of having to defend my profession from those who believe our members are uptight bluenoses. But your column today shows a lack of research, specificity, and knowledge of today's librarians. We are all about access to information and literacy materials. We defend our patrons' right to find, evaluate and use information responsibly. We respect the privacy rights of our patrons. And if our book budgets and shelf space would allow, we'd order ten times as many books as we do. I still don't know if The Higher Power of Lucky will end up on the shelves of my library. I have yet to read the book. And my students seem to be more interested in dragons, knights, vampires, and fantasy than social issues and empowerment of ten-year-old orphans. I will wait to see what the budget allows and what the buzz for books is in my school. I suspect that "scores of librarians" in "numerous libraries" throughout the country will do the same. I take the word of the venerable New York Times and the mainstream press with a grain of salt these days because it seems to me that they are all too willing to accept and perpetuate the myth that librarians "ban" books for capricious reasons. I suggest you check your facts. If you find that "scores" of librarians are "banning" The Higher Power of Lucky from "numerous" libraries, please let us know. And back it up with solid figures. We librarians like our information to be verified, concise, unbiased, and responsibly presented. Respectfully yours, Jan Birney, "Media Diva" of Jockey Hollow Middle School, Monroe, Connecticut Jan Birney, Library Media Specialist Jockey Hollow Middle School 365 Fan Hill Rd Monroe, CT 06468 203-452-2281 jbirney@monroeps.org -------------------------------------------------------------------- Please note: All LM_NET postings are protected by copyright law. You can prevent most e-mail filters from deleting LM_NET postings by adding LM_NET@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU to your e-mail address book. 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