Chris Crutcher's Whale Talk and Censorship



photo by Kelly Halls



Whale Talk author Chris Crutcher responds to a challenge of his book in Athens, AL:  "When a teacher looks out over his or her classroom, he/she is looking at one in three girls who have been sexually mistreated, one in five boys.  That doesn’t take into consideration the number of kids who have been beaten, locked up, or simply never allowed to be good enough.  Stories are buffered in fiction and therefore allow discussion of issues that would not otherwise be brought up.  They save many students.  I’d think twice before I allowed them to be taken away. . . .  Your decision won’t impact my income or my self-esteem.  You have a lot more to lose here than I have, and that’s why I take time to state my case.  The kids you turn your backs on when you take away their stories, are the ones who lose, as well as you as a community of adults who may appear to fear their truths."  The book was removed from library shelves and taken off of the district-wide reading list.

What happens when you take away "their stories"?  What sort of loss or wrong is Crutcher talking about?

quoted material accessed on 2/3/2011 at the author's website

Lauren Myracle's TTYL -

In the introduction to her book,  500 Great Books for Teens,  Anita Silvey, well known editor and critic in the genre of childrens literature (former editor of The Horn Book and VP in charge of children & young adult books at publisher Houghton Mifflin),  writes "Great teenage literature  has always addressed the fundamental questions of the teenage years: Who am I? Do I matter?  How do I relate to others? In that literature, teens get blown off course by their hormones, just as they do in the real world.  Teenage angst and ennui shape many of the characters.  All young adult literature explores the problems of separation and empowerment.  Sometimes that process can have terrible results . . . but usually in coming-of-age stories the movement from childhood to adulthood is inevitable and necessary.  Through their angst, the protagonists become adults, separate from their parents, and exercise independent judgement from the adults around them."  How do you find TTYL fitting this description?  What makes the book appealing to young adult readers?  What about TTYL causes parental concern?  Is this concern justified?  (500 Great Books accessed  on 2/3/2011 via internet)