I was flabbergasted a couple of weeks ago to learn that a law had passed in Texas that will turn public school library book selection on its head.
As of September 1, 2025, school boards in Texas will select all books for public school libraries instead of professional librarians. I’ll bet the Texas state legislators thought it would be easy-peazy, so let’s just let the local school board members do it.
Local school board members tend to be just regular people. Most of them do not have college degrees in library science. Dare I go out on a limb and say that none of them do? How many course hours have they studied library collection development?
Why is it that humans assume their job takes a high degree of training and skill, but no one else’s job carries any requirements?
Since I live with a retired public school librarian, I have a ton of questions.
Can all the local school board members in Texas read on a 12th grade level?
What do they know about reading levels?
What do they know about age appropriateness?
Do they know how time-consuming the book selection process is?
Do they know anything about book selection, such as where to even get a list of books available for school libraries?
Do they know how to balance book selection against a budget?
Do they know who the award-winning authors and illustrators are?
Do they know what books are already on the shelves in all the schools in their district so they can avoid duplication and maintain a balance of subject matter?
Do they know everything that is taught on every grade level so they can be sure to order books that will supplement or enhance what is being taught in every classroom?
Does a school board have to be unanimous and vote on each book?
I could list more questions. Those 10 are just the ones that came to me immediately when I read the news report.
What are they thinking in Monroe County, Tennessee?
I read on Sunday that in a report from PEN America that book banners are going after books about cats. No one seems to know why book banners have a vendetta against our little feline friends, but it is happening in Iowa, Florida, and in Monroe County, Tennessee.
Monroe County has banned almost 600 books from its public schools. The Complete Book of Cats and The New Encyclopedia of the Cat are just two of the cat-related titles being pulled from the school library shelves.
I don’t even know what to say about that. I love dogs. I don’t like cats very much (aside from being fascinated by the beauty of tigers), but I would never want books about cats to disappear from libraries.
But wait! On Monday, I learned that one of the books banned from schools in Monroe County is The Complete Book of Dogs, by Rosie Pilbeam! Now they have gone too far!
You can’t go around banning books about dogs! You just can’t! That’s un-American. Dogs are love universally. Every library in the world should have books about dogs – and even cats.
Why in the name of everything reasonable is Monroe County, Tennessee banning cat and dog “encyclopedias” from school libraries? What if that 8th grader or 12th grader aspires to be a veterinarian? Is that student not supposed to learn about animals until they get to college? How ridiculous!
In what universe does it make sense to ban books about cats and dog?
In what world does it make sense to ban ANY books?
Digging deeper into this on the internet, I found that this is the result of Tennessee’s Age-Appropriate Materials Act, which went into effect this summer.
In addition to apparently any book about cats or dogs, the usual book banners’ target are on the list: To Kill a Mockingbird, Of Mice and Men, Fahrenheit 451, Lord of the Flies, Grapes of Wrath, Hidden Figures, Brave New World, Animal Farm; and Aztec, Inca, and Maya.
In my opinion the book above all others that should not be on anyone’s banned books list is Hidden Figures, by Margot Lee Shetterley. Heaven forbid a young black girl (or brown girl, or white girl) reads that book and is inspired to be a mathematician!
All kidding aside about dogs and cats, how dare they take Hidden Figures off the public school library shelves! How dare they!
There is such a thing as age appropriateness, but books should not be banned anywhere.
What are they afraid of?
Fortunately, Monroe County, Tennessee, only has a population of 46,250 as of the 2020 U.S. Census, so it’s book banning decisions won’t affect a huge number of children. But, since the Tennessee Age-Appropriate Materials Act applies to the entire state, will other county school systems follow Monroe County’s lead and ban the same 574 books?
North Carolina has some faults, but I’m so glad I don’t live in Texas or Monroe County, Tennessee! How embarrassing for the people there.
A bit of good news out of Washington, DC!
North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson announced on Monday that the U.S. Department of Education decided to unfreeze the money it froze a week or two ago that was earmarked for after-school programs. This means North Carolina will get $36 million of the $165 million the Department of Education originally said it was freezing.
Jackson vowed he will see the U.S. Department of Education in court to try to recover the other $130 million.
Until my next blog post
Read anything and everything you can get your hands on.
Don’t let anyone tell you what you should not read.
Look for my blog post tomorrow about the 596 books the U.S Department of Defense has banned this month from the schools it operates for the children of our military personnel.
Remember the people of Ukraine and western North Carolina.
Janet
Janet's Writing Blog 