R is for (knee-jerk) Reaction

School librarians’ reactions to the use of the word scrotum in Higher Power of Lucky first appeared on the listserv LM NET in February 2007 (before the dust had barely settled on Patron’s Newbery Medal). A number of librarians were named in the School Library Journal article “Hitting Below the Belt” as stating they would most likely not purchase the book for their collection because the word scrotum appeared in the book. Those individuals named include:

• “Dana Nilsson of Sunnyside Elementary School in Durango, CO … [who] has the book in her library, added that she couldn't ‘possibly read this as a read-aloud and am thinking it will be challenged big time.’… Nilsson had received 25 responses and all but one elementary school librarian said they would not buy the book.”
• “Betty Klein of Avery Coonley School in [Downers Grove] Illinois, were also concerned about complaints from parents and whether librarians could justify having the book in their collections if it didn't support the curriculum.”

Other school librarians’ LM NET reactions were reported in the New York Times article, “With One Word, Children’s Book Sets Off Uproar." Individual librarians mentioned in this mainstream publication include:

• “Wendy Stoll, a librarian at Smyrna Elementary in Louisville, Ky., wrote on the LM NET mailing list that she would not stock the book.”
• “Andrea Koch, the librarian at French Road Elementary School in Brighton, N.Y., said she anticipated angry calls from parents if she ordered it.”

The Times article also mentioned that “The book has already been banned from school libraries in a handful of states in the South, the West and the Northeast, and librarians in other schools have indicated in the online debate that they may well follow suit.”