It’s currently the American Library Association’s Banned Books Week, whose by-line is “celebrating the freedom to read”. Having the freedom to read is always cause for celebration (as is the freedom to write and we should bear in mind those who are persecuted for trying to exercise that freedom). However, having that freedom does not mean that we should advocate a blanket lack of discernment. And it would be naive to think that the reading choices available have not been subject to a selection process along the way: publishers, librarians, booksellers, teachers, parents.

Our Book of the Month back in August, Requiem for a Beast by Matt Ottley (Hachette Livre/ Lothian Books, 2007) caused a great deal of contoversy when it first hit the bookshops in Australia. The misunderstandings about this Australian Children’s Book Council Picture Book of the Year (2008) centered on the fact that this is a picture-book but is certainly not aimed at young readers.

Here’s an extract from our recent interview with Matt:

Requiem for a Beast has now notoriously become the most complained about book for young people in Australian history! That’s because it contains one graphic illustration of a bloodied axe, as well as two vague references to suicide and five incidences of the “f” word. What a lot of commentators didn’t seem to take on board when the book first came to public notice, is that this is a picture book for young adults, not for little children.

My young adult audience has been unfalteringly supportive, and I’ve received the most amazing feedback from them.

The whole ensemble of words, image and music is extremely powerful and the use of swearing in some of the written dialogue is certainly not gratuitous. On the contrary: I cannot imagine that Australian stockmen do not resort to colorful language from time to time. However, this is a book for young adults and indeed adults. It is not for young children – and it was never intended to be.

One of the responsibilities of being a parent or a teacher is to provide young people with the tools to discern and to think for themselves. It can be scary to see where that thinking takes them but we have to trust them to make their choices…

Natasha over at Maw Books has a thought-provoking post with a list of books that have been banned at some point – some of them may surprise you; and she has lots of links to other blogs discussing Banned Books…

The 5th Annual PEN World Voices Festival of International Literature showcases the work of more than 160 international writers from across the globe in conversations, readings, performances, and panels together with their American counterparts for an exciting cross-cultural celebration of the written word. The following events, with a focus on children’s and young adult’s literature, are free and open to the public:

The Voyage of the Reader: Using Children’s Books to Create a Love of Reading ~ Wed, April 29

Participants: Mary Ann Hoberman, Francine Prose, and Vera B. Williams. Moderated by President and Publisher of Razorbill books, Benjamin D.Schrank.

How do authors create and hold on to young readers in the electronic world? Three distinguished panelists-Vera B. Williams, an award-winning author and illustrator; Mary Ann Hoberman, the U.S. Children’s Poet Laureate; and Francine Prose, the award-winning author of picture books, children’s, young adult, and adult novels-offer their expertise.

Leaps and Bounds, Fits and Starts: The Evolution of a Children’s Book Writer ~ Thurs, April 30

Participants: Neil Gaiman, Mariken Jongman, Shaun Tan, and Andrea Davis Pinkney as the participating moderator.

Join children’s book authors Neil Gaiman, Mariken Jongman, and Shaun Tan for a discussion about the ever-evolving landscape of children’s and young adult literature with Scholastic Vice President, Executive Editor Andrea Davis Pinkney.

Evolution for Children: The Fight Goes On ~ Sun, May 3

Participants: Vicki Cobb, Tijs Goldschmidt, Deborah Heiligman, and Mary Ann Hoberman. Moderated by Ellen Loughran.

Teachers, librarians, scientists, and children’s book writers have fought in the courts and classrooms for the right to teach Darwin’s theory, and the authors on this panel have many ways of winning it.