Antioch Parents Upset Over Book Choice

By Marcus Gilmer in News on Jun 22, 2009 2:20PM

A group of parents at Antioch High School hope to have a Sherman Alexie novel assigned to incoming freshmen for summer reading banned, describing the book as "vulgar" and "racist." The book at the center of the controversy is Alexie's The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, which was good enough to earn accolades like the National Book Award for Young People's Literature, named one of the Los Angeles Times' Favorite Children's Books of 2007, and named New York Times' Notable Children's Books of 2007. But such awards are not enough for some parents who want the book pulled off the list.

Jennifer Anderson, parent of a 14-year-old, claimed language used by the book's main character, Arnold, was graphic and inappropriate. She told the Tribune, "I can't imagine anyone finding this book appropriate for a 13- or 14-year-old. I have not met a single parent who is not shocked by this. This is not appropriate for our community." Meanwhile, John Whitehurst, chairman of the English department at Antioch High School, defended the choice, saying, "That is like saying that because Romeo and Juliet committed teen suicide, we condone teen suicide. Kids know the difference. Like it or not, that is the way 14-year-old boys talk to each other."

Of course, there is an alternate title on the list students can read instead, but it's not good enough for Anderson, who has bigger designs than getting the book pulled.

Anderson said she would like to make this a national conversation about placing warning labels on books.

"We rate movies and put warnings on music and TV," she said. "What about books? There is no warning whatsoever if there is vulgar language in a book."