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So the American Library Association lists the 100 Most Frequently Challenged Books of 1990-2000. That is, books that have been the cause of complaints from parents, concerned readers, moral and upstanding citizens, etc. What’s interesting about this list is that most people would probably be surprised not to find such books as Animal Farm, Portnoy’s Complaint, or Origin of Species but to find those written mostly for children and adolescents.

The list contains such hubris as Where’s Waldo (#88 – who knows why), Forever by Judy Blume (#8 - a novel meant to be a sexual awakener for older adolescents), James and the Giant Peach (#56 - he’s arguably a parricidal killer!), and the Scary Stories series by Alvin Schwartz (#1 ). All told, I’ve read 20 of the books on the list (plus a few more I’ve read partly), most when I was between the ages of 8 and 13. I guess these books deliver reality to their unsuspecting readers all too swiftly, as exemplified by the inclusion of Bridge to Terabithia. Perhaps parents would rather let their children learn about coping with death through example than through literary food-for-thought. (via Kevin Drum)