Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Counter Narrative
For my counter narrative, I'm planning on presenting the cinderella story without all of the romanticism. I'm planning on making Cinderella much more in charge of her own fate, relying less on the help of others, like her fairy godmother and the princess's attempts to find her. I want Cinderella to present her story in her own words, telling how she made a fate for herself, and didn't just let others handle it for her. I also want to change her family dynamic, not villianizing her sisters and stepmother. Essentially, I want to show Cinderella as a regular girl who took charge and created something special for herself. I think it will be an interesting perspective, to take away all the fluff and frills involved in the Cinderella story. I actually think that young children will identify more with a character who is more like them, and it will make for a much better children's book.
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Community Research
For my bookstore research, I chose to visit the Borders store in Friendship Heights. I thought it would be interesting to go to a chain store, one I frequently use myself, and review it with a critical eye. There is obviously a big different between a corporate-owned chain like Borders, and smaller local-owned book stores. From the second you enter Borders, you can tell that the aim is to make sales. The first things you see inside the store are shelves holding Bestsellers, the most popular books on the market. As you make your way back to the children's section, various toy displays lead you back to the books, showing more things you could buy along with your book purchase. The children's section is located in the back of the store. This is a smart choice because parents and children have to walk through tons of merchandise on the way back to the checkout, and will inevitably end up buying more. The children's section itself is not a particularly large one. It is organized by age group in some sections, by author in others. It was not easy to find books if you didn't know their exact age range or author's last name. The books displayed were all very generic, mostly featuring white children and families on their covers. None of the featured books dealt with any major issues. The spanish language section is very small, and the relgious book selection is larger than the science section. There seem to be as many toys as books, many of them featuring characters from popular children's books. I actively sought out "And Tango Makes Three" to see if Borders stocked it, and I did find one copy. Overall, the selection showed a major lack of books on diverse and controversial topics. It is important to remember that this is a generic chain bookstore, and their aim is to stock to popular books that will sell, so sad as it is, it makes sense that the more out there books wouldn't be present.
I visited my library at home to do further research. During middle school and high school, I frequently used our public Library in Chapel Hill, and again, it was interesting to look at a frequent part of my life from a different view. After exploring the children's section of the library, I came to a few conclusions. The selection of books available was far more diverse than the selection at Borders, but the books were in general much less recent. While the library had a lot of books that dealt with race, cultural differences, and different kinds of families, the majority of these books were written at least 10 to 15 years ago, and many were simply out of date and made broad cultural statements edging on stereotypes. I'm not sure whether some of these books were helpful or hurtful. The lack of current books was a big problem. Obviously public libraries simply do not have the funding to stock to most recent titles, but there does need to be a solution to this problem, because portrayals of diversity in some of the stocked books are just not helpful for impressionable kids.
Websites:
-This website functions as a database for children's literature. The website aims to provide reliable and current information about all literature available to children and it's benefits for use in the classroom/home.
-This site aims to offer children's literature titles that can help to teach cultural diversity and foster a love of different cultures in young children.
-This site offers lists of books that can be used in the classroom and reviews their benefits, and divides them into different categories based on age group and content.
-This website offers the most current information about literature being published for teens, young adults, and young children.
During all of our discussions about children's literature in the media, I have always thought of a musical called "Into the Woods." This show follows the stories of many different fairy tale characters, and blends them all together to create the show. These characters include Cinderella and her stepsisters, Little Red Riding Hood, the Wolf, Rapunzel, Jack (of Jack and the Beanstalk) and his Giant, among others. Though this show features all of these characters, it is in no way a children's show. The show deals with serious themes and doesn't depict happy endings for the majority of the characters. Through what I have learned in this class, this musical has become more and more interesting to me, as it has a strong moral message, but depicts some scary subject matter along the way. In the end, the musical pushes the idea to be careful what you do, because "children will listen" and follow your example.
Here is a link to a medley performance of some of the songs from the show:
Friday, October 8, 2010
Banned Books
Banned book lists have always shocked me. Half of my high school curriculum has appeared on banned book lists in some state at some point over the past 20 years. Catcher in the Rye, The Great Gatsby, Beloved, Their Eyes Were Watching God, Invisible Man, Of Mice and Men, Animal Farm, the list goes on. But honestly, more shocking to me were the children's and young adult lit that I found appearing on the lists. Judy Blume, the woman who held the key to so many young adult hearts of my generation, is all over the lists of banned books from the 1990s. What is it that people find so awful about books, to the point where they believe they should be "banned"? And on top of that, why so often does it matter less what the book is truly about, and more what has been heard about it? A few years ago, I read an article that I will never forget, from a mother who was a major supporter of banning the Harry Potter books from her childrens' school/local library. The article chronicled her journey trying to challenge the book, but ended not quite in the most expected way. The woman actually read the Harry Potter books, in the middle of her crusade, and realized that none of the atrocities she had been told existed in the novels were actually present. Who would have thought that reading a book could shed some light on its themes!
I was incredibly blessed growing up to be in a family where limits weren't placed around what we could and couldn't read. The only restrictions I remember, entertainment-wise, in were that we couldn't watch "Ren and Stimpy," and that "Daria" would have to wait until we were older. More and more as I get older I realize just how special it is to be granted freedom to read what you want, when you want to! Sure, I'm glad that I didn't try to read Beloved at 12, and if I had, I would have appreciated a little discouragement from my mom, but what 12-year-old would be interested in reading a book like that anyway! Kids tend to be interested in things that resonate with their age group, and when they show interest in something that might be too much of a stretch, the instinct should be to teach why it's too soon, not to abolish it altogether. There is so much effort put into protecting children from the bad things that exist, but shouldn't we instead help them to be more accepting, make them good people through the use of literature that establishes that not every child lives in a suburban house with a picket fence and a golden retriever? And that imagination can extend beyond the realms of disney princess movies? Books of diverse subject matter and background could be such important potential teaching tools if used properly.
Shel Silverstein's A Light in the Attic was one of the 50 most frequently banned books for the 1990s, primarily because it contained a poem inspiring kids to break the dishes so they won't have to wash them. If that doesn't give us reason to reassess the way we think about these things, I don't know what will!
I was incredibly blessed growing up to be in a family where limits weren't placed around what we could and couldn't read. The only restrictions I remember, entertainment-wise, in were that we couldn't watch "Ren and Stimpy," and that "Daria" would have to wait until we were older. More and more as I get older I realize just how special it is to be granted freedom to read what you want, when you want to! Sure, I'm glad that I didn't try to read Beloved at 12, and if I had, I would have appreciated a little discouragement from my mom, but what 12-year-old would be interested in reading a book like that anyway! Kids tend to be interested in things that resonate with their age group, and when they show interest in something that might be too much of a stretch, the instinct should be to teach why it's too soon, not to abolish it altogether. There is so much effort put into protecting children from the bad things that exist, but shouldn't we instead help them to be more accepting, make them good people through the use of literature that establishes that not every child lives in a suburban house with a picket fence and a golden retriever? And that imagination can extend beyond the realms of disney princess movies? Books of diverse subject matter and background could be such important potential teaching tools if used properly.
Shel Silverstein's A Light in the Attic was one of the 50 most frequently banned books for the 1990s, primarily because it contained a poem inspiring kids to break the dishes so they won't have to wash them. If that doesn't give us reason to reassess the way we think about these things, I don't know what will!
Friday, September 24, 2010
Critical Analysis Podcast
For my podcast project, I am considering using The Lorax by Dr. Seuss. This children's book chronicles the destruction of the environment due to industrialization, but depicts it in an easily understandable way for children. I want to discuss how this book can help to teach children about sustainability and positive environmental practices. I read this book is a child, and never had any concept of the fact that it was actually an environmental statement. During my junior year of high school, we revisited this book in an AP Environmental Science class, and I realized the impact that Dr. Seuss' tale could have on young children. Especially in today's society, it is incredibly important that children develop a respect for the environment and all that it offers us. We can use books like this to teach these important lessons in a fun way. The Lorax was always one of my family's favorite books growing up, and had my parents, or a teacher, worked to illuminate the messages behind the story, it could have been incredibly influential in our lives. I would like to use my podcast to display the possibilities for learning in my favorite Dr. Seuss picture book.
Friday, September 17, 2010
Quotable Quotes- When the Emperor Was Divine
"He wiped off the leather with his sleeve and put the shoes back into the suitcase. Outside it was dark and in the barrack windows there were lights on and figures moving behind curtains. He wondered what his father was doing right then. Getting ready for bed, maybe. Washing his face. Or brushing his teeth. Did they even have toothpaste in Lordsburg? He didn't know. He'd have to write him and ask. He lay down on his cot and pulled up the blankets. He could hear his mother snoring softly in the darkness, and a lone coyote in the hills to the south, howling up at the moon. He wondered if you could see the same moon in Lordsburg, or London, or even China, where all the men wore little black slippers And he decided that you could, depending on the clouds.
'Same moon,' he whispered to himself, 'same moon.'" (Pg 67-68)
What really struck me about this quote, and about so much of the writing from the children's perspective, was the sense of questioning, wondering, and overall consciousness of life outside themselves despite the horrible circumstances. The boy has been shipped away from his home, has lost most of his belongings, is living in terrible accommodations, and has every reason to turn inward and become frustrated and angry, but instead, he wonders about the world outside of his newly shrunken world, specifically about his father who has been separated from them for so long. Despite some more innocent moments, the boy and girl in this novel show an incredible amount of maturity, and appear to be very wise beyond their years in their chunks of the novel. There is a weight that goes along with living through such an experience, and it is apparent that the children are changed by it. This quote is a perfect blend of the newfound maturity and the innocence of childhood. The boy contemplates what his father is doing, and wonders whether you can see the same moon all over the world, and comes up with a very educated, simple answer. You can, depending on the clouds. This is a very mature and thought-out solution to his problem. But with the boy's quiet repetition of "same moon," we see that he isn't assuring himself of this fact because of his scientific interest, but because he needs to believe it to maintain his connection to his father. The boy is still an innocent child who simply wants comfort. There was something so striking to me about his prayer-like repetition of "same moon...same moon" that I knew this was a quote of particular importance.
"He never said a word about the years he'd been away. Not one word. He never talked about politics, or his arrest, or how he had lost all his teeth. He never mentioned his loyalty hearing before the Alien Enemy Control Unit. He never told us what, exactly, he'd been accused of. Sabotage? Selling secrets to the enemy? Conspiring to overthrow the government? Was he guilty as charged? Was he innocent? (Was he even there at all?) We didn't know. We didn't want to know. We never asked. All we wanted to do, now that we were back in the world, was forget." (Pg 133)
I find this quote of particular importance when contrasted with my previous one. While being held in Utah, the boy wonders constantly about his father's every little action, and wishes to know exactly what his father's life is like, but when the family is finally all reunited, not only does the father offer none of this information, but the family never asks. Despite all of the years apart, and the deep ache they once felt to know what he was doing, they can't bring themselves to desire to know what happened to him. Captivity has changed the family. They are not the same unit they were before the father's arrest, and they are not the same unit that waited impatiently for letters from the family member far away, day after day. Despite all of the nagging questions, the family does not want to know, doesn't want to have to ask what happened. There is an unspoken understanding of the huge experience that has take place, and the family finds that it cannot connect the way it used to. More than connecting with each other, more than knowing the truth, the family just wants normalcy. It is only the most extreme of circumstances that can make you desire that over anything else.
'Same moon,' he whispered to himself, 'same moon.'" (Pg 67-68)
What really struck me about this quote, and about so much of the writing from the children's perspective, was the sense of questioning, wondering, and overall consciousness of life outside themselves despite the horrible circumstances. The boy has been shipped away from his home, has lost most of his belongings, is living in terrible accommodations, and has every reason to turn inward and become frustrated and angry, but instead, he wonders about the world outside of his newly shrunken world, specifically about his father who has been separated from them for so long. Despite some more innocent moments, the boy and girl in this novel show an incredible amount of maturity, and appear to be very wise beyond their years in their chunks of the novel. There is a weight that goes along with living through such an experience, and it is apparent that the children are changed by it. This quote is a perfect blend of the newfound maturity and the innocence of childhood. The boy contemplates what his father is doing, and wonders whether you can see the same moon all over the world, and comes up with a very educated, simple answer. You can, depending on the clouds. This is a very mature and thought-out solution to his problem. But with the boy's quiet repetition of "same moon," we see that he isn't assuring himself of this fact because of his scientific interest, but because he needs to believe it to maintain his connection to his father. The boy is still an innocent child who simply wants comfort. There was something so striking to me about his prayer-like repetition of "same moon...same moon" that I knew this was a quote of particular importance.
"He never said a word about the years he'd been away. Not one word. He never talked about politics, or his arrest, or how he had lost all his teeth. He never mentioned his loyalty hearing before the Alien Enemy Control Unit. He never told us what, exactly, he'd been accused of. Sabotage? Selling secrets to the enemy? Conspiring to overthrow the government? Was he guilty as charged? Was he innocent? (Was he even there at all?) We didn't know. We didn't want to know. We never asked. All we wanted to do, now that we were back in the world, was forget." (Pg 133)
I find this quote of particular importance when contrasted with my previous one. While being held in Utah, the boy wonders constantly about his father's every little action, and wishes to know exactly what his father's life is like, but when the family is finally all reunited, not only does the father offer none of this information, but the family never asks. Despite all of the years apart, and the deep ache they once felt to know what he was doing, they can't bring themselves to desire to know what happened to him. Captivity has changed the family. They are not the same unit they were before the father's arrest, and they are not the same unit that waited impatiently for letters from the family member far away, day after day. Despite all of the nagging questions, the family does not want to know, doesn't want to have to ask what happened. There is an unspoken understanding of the huge experience that has take place, and the family finds that it cannot connect the way it used to. More than connecting with each other, more than knowing the truth, the family just wants normalcy. It is only the most extreme of circumstances that can make you desire that over anything else.
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Positioning and Being Positioned
Hello, my names are:
Megan Elizabeth Daub Westman- This is my full, given name. I have literally never been called my full name, unless someone is reciting it because they saw it written down. Even when I was a child and my mom would use her stern voice on me, she would always say "Megan Elizabeth Westman." My second middle name generally gets left out. My parents named me Megan for no reason except that they liked the name! My aunt's name is Margaret, so they may have gotten the inspiration from her, but there isn't any deep meaning behind the choice. Elizabeth is my grandmother's name, and Daub is my mother's maiden name. Despite the fact that it usually gets dropped, I am very glad to have my mother's maiden name included in my full name. I feel that it provides a connection to my mother's side of the family, and I'm glad to keep that in my name, and not just be a Westman. Westman doesn't really give anything away about my family's background or homeland, it's pretty generic! And it's useful because it's one that people rarely spell the wrong way.
Megan- 95% of the time, and to 95% of people, I am simply Megan. It's how I introduce myself, how my name appears on class rosters, and generally the norm for anyone talking to me. I really like my name, and couldn't imagine being named anything else. I feel that Megan suits me pretty well. It's a popular English/Welsh name and it means "little pearl." That meaning has never really resonated with me, but I like the name. I feel that Megan is a pretty informal sounding name, which is nice. Not incredibly dignified or anything, but it is simple, and has a nice ring to it, and I've never wanted to be named anything else.
Megan Elizabeth- On occasion, people call me Megan Elizabeth. Mostly my family, or when people are joking around with me and choose to use both names. It always feels very affectionate and caring to me when people use both names, probably because it means that they know my middle name, and it has sort of a warm, loving ring to it.
Meg- I am often Meg to those who know me very well and those who don't know me at all. My closest friends and family call me "Meg" as an affectionate nickname. Those who don't know me well and don't necessarily really remember my name sometimes call me Meg because that's all them remember... Either way, I like the name and don't mind. It is very friendly sounding, and I always enjoy being known as Meg. For a short period in high school, I thought I wanted to go by Meg as the norm, but quickly realized that while it's a good nickname, Megan really suits me more on the whole. Though, in classes with multiple Megans, I often go by Meg to make things simpler.
Nutmeg/Meglet/Megaroo- These are all variations on my name that have been nicknames since childhood. Nutmeg comes from the spice, Meglet comes from my love of Piglet from Winnie the Pooh, and Megaroo is one that my sister made up and it stuck. All of these are fun things to be called, and rather cute nicknames, and I've always enjoyed them.
Smeags- Not the most flattering nickname in the world, but this one was started last year by my group of friends at American and has stuck. We had a thing for watching lord of the rings, and someone realized that meg and smeagol sounded similarly, and thus "Smeags" was born. Though I can't say I'm super excited to be compared to Gollum's creepy split personality, we all have nicknames for each other and the use of this one, silly as it is, is always affectionate and appreciated. It has stopped representing smeagol to me, and is just a nickname! Weird as it is, I've grown to like it.
MegWest- To the group of kids who I did community theater with in high school, I became MegWest. Pretty obvious, some one just chose to combine parts of my first and last name and created this nickname. This nickname always makes me feel very in control and in charge, because it would often be called across a space to ask me to make decisions about what we were doing. In a community theater organization run by under 18-year-olds, you take on a lot of responsibility and this nickname signifies to me all of the work that I did while in charge of the company. It will always mean something special to me.
Hello, my names are NOT:
May-gan- For some reason, many people are convinced that my name is pronounced this way, and it is not! I had a teacher in high school who I knew very well, and had for 3 out of 4 of my years, who even wrote my college recommendation, and stilled called me "May-gan" by the end of senior year. Some people just pronounce it that way, and I've learned not to mind, but sometimes it still irritates me a bit when it happens.
Meagan/Meghan- For being such a simple name, there sure are a million ways to spell Megan. Mine is the simplest, and to me makes the most sense, so I never understand why people assume there will be an extra a or e or h thrown into the mix.
Ed- When we were young, my sister caught on to the fact that my middle initials spell "Ed" and started to call me that. It would make me very very angry because I didn't have any clever boy's name to call her, and I always hated when she called me Ed. To this day, she'll bring it up and I'll be irritated, regardless of the fact that I know it's silly and it's been many years!
Wegan Mestman- Go ahead, laugh. It's funny. This is a nickname that everyone in the world except for me thinks is hilarious. I think it's stupid, and I realize it sounds funny, but it bothers me. People will say it and laugh and I'll just sit there and be unamused. I don't know what it is about this nickname, but I don't like it. Nicknames are generally affectionate, but this one just feels mean. I don't like it, and don't think I ever will!
Megan Elizabeth Daub Westman- This is my full, given name. I have literally never been called my full name, unless someone is reciting it because they saw it written down. Even when I was a child and my mom would use her stern voice on me, she would always say "Megan Elizabeth Westman." My second middle name generally gets left out. My parents named me Megan for no reason except that they liked the name! My aunt's name is Margaret, so they may have gotten the inspiration from her, but there isn't any deep meaning behind the choice. Elizabeth is my grandmother's name, and Daub is my mother's maiden name. Despite the fact that it usually gets dropped, I am very glad to have my mother's maiden name included in my full name. I feel that it provides a connection to my mother's side of the family, and I'm glad to keep that in my name, and not just be a Westman. Westman doesn't really give anything away about my family's background or homeland, it's pretty generic! And it's useful because it's one that people rarely spell the wrong way.
Megan- 95% of the time, and to 95% of people, I am simply Megan. It's how I introduce myself, how my name appears on class rosters, and generally the norm for anyone talking to me. I really like my name, and couldn't imagine being named anything else. I feel that Megan suits me pretty well. It's a popular English/Welsh name and it means "little pearl." That meaning has never really resonated with me, but I like the name. I feel that Megan is a pretty informal sounding name, which is nice. Not incredibly dignified or anything, but it is simple, and has a nice ring to it, and I've never wanted to be named anything else.
Megan Elizabeth- On occasion, people call me Megan Elizabeth. Mostly my family, or when people are joking around with me and choose to use both names. It always feels very affectionate and caring to me when people use both names, probably because it means that they know my middle name, and it has sort of a warm, loving ring to it.
Meg- I am often Meg to those who know me very well and those who don't know me at all. My closest friends and family call me "Meg" as an affectionate nickname. Those who don't know me well and don't necessarily really remember my name sometimes call me Meg because that's all them remember... Either way, I like the name and don't mind. It is very friendly sounding, and I always enjoy being known as Meg. For a short period in high school, I thought I wanted to go by Meg as the norm, but quickly realized that while it's a good nickname, Megan really suits me more on the whole. Though, in classes with multiple Megans, I often go by Meg to make things simpler.
Nutmeg/Meglet/Megaroo- These are all variations on my name that have been nicknames since childhood. Nutmeg comes from the spice, Meglet comes from my love of Piglet from Winnie the Pooh, and Megaroo is one that my sister made up and it stuck. All of these are fun things to be called, and rather cute nicknames, and I've always enjoyed them.
Smeags- Not the most flattering nickname in the world, but this one was started last year by my group of friends at American and has stuck. We had a thing for watching lord of the rings, and someone realized that meg and smeagol sounded similarly, and thus "Smeags" was born. Though I can't say I'm super excited to be compared to Gollum's creepy split personality, we all have nicknames for each other and the use of this one, silly as it is, is always affectionate and appreciated. It has stopped representing smeagol to me, and is just a nickname! Weird as it is, I've grown to like it.
MegWest- To the group of kids who I did community theater with in high school, I became MegWest. Pretty obvious, some one just chose to combine parts of my first and last name and created this nickname. This nickname always makes me feel very in control and in charge, because it would often be called across a space to ask me to make decisions about what we were doing. In a community theater organization run by under 18-year-olds, you take on a lot of responsibility and this nickname signifies to me all of the work that I did while in charge of the company. It will always mean something special to me.
Hello, my names are NOT:
May-gan- For some reason, many people are convinced that my name is pronounced this way, and it is not! I had a teacher in high school who I knew very well, and had for 3 out of 4 of my years, who even wrote my college recommendation, and stilled called me "May-gan" by the end of senior year. Some people just pronounce it that way, and I've learned not to mind, but sometimes it still irritates me a bit when it happens.
Meagan/Meghan- For being such a simple name, there sure are a million ways to spell Megan. Mine is the simplest, and to me makes the most sense, so I never understand why people assume there will be an extra a or e or h thrown into the mix.
Ed- When we were young, my sister caught on to the fact that my middle initials spell "Ed" and started to call me that. It would make me very very angry because I didn't have any clever boy's name to call her, and I always hated when she called me Ed. To this day, she'll bring it up and I'll be irritated, regardless of the fact that I know it's silly and it's been many years!
Wegan Mestman- Go ahead, laugh. It's funny. This is a nickname that everyone in the world except for me thinks is hilarious. I think it's stupid, and I realize it sounds funny, but it bothers me. People will say it and laugh and I'll just sit there and be unamused. I don't know what it is about this nickname, but I don't like it. Nicknames are generally affectionate, but this one just feels mean. I don't like it, and don't think I ever will!
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Researching the Self.
The summer before I started high school, I took it upon myself to work my way through the young adult fiction section at the Chapel Hill Public Library. By the end of the summer, I had given up my quest to read every book on the shelves, but had finished a huge number of books that have stuck with me to this day. One of the books I dove into that summer was Sex Education: A Novel, by Jenny Davis. As the title asserts, this work of fiction makes no attempt to tackle the difficult act of educating children about sex, but instead tells the compelling story of two young adults and their journey together to simply "care about someone" as a class project. As the story progresses and leads to a very terrible climax, Davis shows the stark reality of both the best and worst in people, and just how serious caring about someone can become.
I picked up this book because I read the back cover, it seemed interesting, and I was at the Da-'s of young adult fiction. I grabbed it, and one other novel, to take to the beach, thinking it would be a good read for lying out on the sand. In reality, I began reading it on the car ride to Hilton Head, NC, and had finished it before we got out of the car. With the exception of the Harry Potter books and some speed-reads before classes, I don't think I've ever read a novel so quickly. The second and third (and fourth and fifth...) times I read it, I did manage to slow down and further appreciate the text.
Sex Education is by no means the best-written book I've ever read, nor did it teach me anything about sex that I hadn't already learned in 8th grade health. What it did teach me is the value of trust, the importance of investing in the world around us, and the fact that sometimes asking for help is the most important kind of courage. The teacher in this novel, who chooses to use a progressive form of sex education in the '80s, recognizes the potential of her students, and pushes them to be better people. She places a level of trust in her students, including the two main characters (Livvie and David), that is rarely seen in adult-student relationships. This trust and respect is something I always look for and bring to my interactions with others. I am also moved to care fully about those around me because of this novel. Though they end up in a very messy situation, the way in which the characters in this novel care about each other, and the world around them, is completely admirable. More than anything else, this novel's tragic end taught me that I can't solve the world's problems all alone, and it is always appropriate to ask for help. I feel that so often people get in over their heads, and one of the most vital lessons in life is that we don't have to do it all on our own.
After reading this book, I found that it was on the American Library Association's list of the top 100 most frequently challenged (attempted to ban) books of 1990-2000. Though I can't say that this was surprising (the list also includes Of Mice and Men, Catcher in the Rye, and Bridge to Terabithia, to name a few), it is very sad, and I am incredibly lucky to live in a progressive town and have parents who don't believe in denying children of important books. It almost makes the knowledge I gained from this novel even more special, knowing that it has frequently been contested, but still stands. After finding this out, another impact that this book left on me was the desire to seek out and read those books deemed worthy of challenging, and have found that my literary knowledge and life knowledge have both been exponentially improved through the experience.
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