Friday Connections

 Hey guys! I know I just jumped back into the blogosphere, but I'm going on a trip next week, and won't be able to post as a result.  (I really should have planned things better!)

I did, however, want to leave you guys with a couple of links about two authors who have been dis-invited to visit schools. In the case of Phil Bildner, it appears that a school district that he's been visiting for years has dis-invited him due to a book talk he did in which he talked about, among several other books, George by Alex Gino. Although the school hasn't said why they've dis-invited him, it appears this book, or one of the others he talked about previously might be the cause.

For Kate Messner, apparently she had scheduled to visit a school back in January as part of her release for her new book The Seventh Wish, which deals with the theme of drug addition and it's effect on the family. The kids and parents were given information about the book and Messner's visit months in advance. However, the day before she was to visit the school, they asked her not to come because they feared the topic wasn't appropriate.

Now, anyone who knows me knows I'm a strong proponent against censorship in all forms in the literary world. I can't comprehend keeping any child from a book that has the potential of changing their life. It's for this reason that I'm upset to hear about these stories. I encourage you to share your support for these authors and raise awareness. 

People shouldn't be afraid of letting their children read books that contain ideas contrary to what they believe is right, or because the lives in these stories are different from their own. We talk about encouraging diversity so much in this country, yet when given the opportunity to offer it to our kids, we balk at the idea because we don't want to discuss a certain topic with them, or they might get bad ideas. 

So pop over to these links, share them, share why you think allowing access to ALL books is important for every child, and hopefully in doing so, we can help at least one person understand why books are so important, and why allowing authors like these two share their ideas at schools is important.

 A Statement from Disinvited Author, Phil Bildner

A blog post I never thought I’d be writing on book release day…