To answer in advance the question that Natalie posed on my last book review (what attracted you to this book?) I could say the title caught my attention because it is unusual but I really selected this book because it was on the banned book list and I wanted to make sure I read at least one banned book this year.
The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things by Carolyn Mackler is indeed the kind of book that ends up on banned books lists because it is honest, it reflects real life, and it makes some people uncomfortable. Virginia, the story's narrator and heroine, is 17 years old, overweight and underpopular. Her mom is a child psychologist who can't understand or communicate with her daughter. Virginia idolizes her brother until he makes a colossal (and in her mind unforgivable) mistake. And she has a non-boyfriend with whom she gets together to "fool around" in the bedroom. (Don't worry, it's not R rated.) In short, Virginia is somebody with whom 90% of today's teenagers can probably identify. They can certainly identify with her blowouts with her parents or disappointment with her brother, or the social hell of school friend relationships.
Her best friend moves from New York City to Walla Walla, Washington causing a real life crisis for Virginia who must now face her challenges alone. Fortunately, the e-mails and instant messages with which she keeps in touch become part of this narrative.
The book is instructive without being preachy, funny without being dopey. I "read" it as a book on CD which was convenient but annoying. The producers or editors have unwittingly erased several seconds of the audio with almost every track change and the book changes tracks every 3 minutes. It's like having a line or two missing on every fourth page of a book. Hopefully, they will catch this and correct it in future editions.
The book is a fabulous read. The CDs are poorly done.
I'm sorry about the bad recording, I haven't had that problem before.
ReplyDeleteIs the list really of banned books? I thought it was just books with the most complaints (i.e. attempts to get it removed.)
I also noticed that it is mostly parents protesting the books, and I wonder if one parent saying they don't want there child reading a book counts as a protest. I mean that certainly seems within a parents rights, and if a teacher wanted my child to read say "Altman's Tongue" I would ask for an alternate assignment.
No the list isn't really "banned" books but books that someone somewhere would like to have banned. In this sense I think the librarians can be rightfully accused of hyperbole. At least as I understand it, these listings weren't the result of parents asking for alternate reading assignments for their children but someone actually completing a request form to have a book removed from access for others as well.
ReplyDeleteAmericans, at least at present, seem to prize their freedom to read and haven't been anxious to agree with most removal requests. Recent book burnings have been primarily done by religious fundamentalist groups targeting specific books such as the Harry Potter series as "promoting witchcraft".
Librarians are naturally sensitive about book banning and therefore promote Banned Book Week as a way to raise the sensitivity of others to the real possibility of losing access to good books.
This title has been removed from the library of my middle school, which is why I picked it up. I am considering challenging the removal.
ReplyDeleteThat is a real shame as it deals with several topics that middle school students face regularly. And it handles them sensibly if not always the way adults would want them handled. I wish you good luck if you challenge.
ReplyDelete