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R/£ Potter series tops the list of books under fire
September 29, 2006 Edition 4
Washington - The Harry Potter series, along with such classics as John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men and a children's series called Captain Underpants, top the list of books that have come most under fire in the last six years, according to the American Library Association (ALA).
The ALA, which in 1990 began tracking efforts to pull books off school shelves and from libraries, and which is celebrating the 25th anniversary of Banned Books Week until September 30, said JK Rowling's boy-wizard series led the pack of books most challenged so far this century because of its use of witchcraft and for "inciting bad behaviour".
Steinbeck's book has come under fire for containing racist, violent language and sexism, while the Captain Underpants superhero is deemed unsuitable for children and is accused of being "anti-family".
Also on the Top-10 list of books most challenged in the 21st century is Maya Angelou's acclaimed autobiography I know Why the Caged Bird Sings, the story of an African-American childhood in the US's 1930s Depression, which was rapped as containing racism, homosexuality and offensive language.
The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier and Forever by Judy Blume both came under attack for sexual content and offensive language, while Robie Harris' It's Perfectly Normal: Changing Bodies, Growing Up, Sex and Sexual Health was panned for being too graphic.
The other books on the list are Phyllis Reynolds Naylor's Alice series, Walter Dean Myers' Fallen Angels and the Scary Stories series by Alvin Schwartz.
"More than a book a day faces expulsion from free and open public access in US schools and libraries every year," ALA said in a statement.
ALA president Leslie Burger noted that "throughout history, there have always been a few people who don't want information to be freely available. And this is still true." There were 405 known attempts to remove books in 2005, ALA said.
The works of literary giants such as Mark Twain, Kurt Vonnegut and George Orwell have come under attack in the past as have books by best-selling popular authors such as Stephen King, Toni Morrison and Alice Walker. - Sapa-AFP
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