María and Adrianna talk about Maia Kobabe's Gender Queer, which has topped the charts in recent years as the #1 most banned and challenged book in the US. Adrianna takes the plunge and actually reads it (it's really good!). María chats One Direction fanfic ... there's something for everyone here.

Buy Gender Queer here or at your local bookstore.

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In this episode, we take a look at Lois Lowry's The Giver -- a 90's dystopian classic that was banned for infanticide, murder,  pill-popping, euthanasia -- and also some really wild stuff.






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Sources:
https://www.maryvillepawprint.com/banned-the-bluest-eye-and-the-giver/
https://thebookwars.wordpress.com/2013/09/24/banned-books-week-the-giver/
https://world.edu/banned-books-awareness-giver-lois-lowry/
https://bannedbooks.library.cmu.edu/lois-lowry-the-giver/
https://www.thoughtco.com/the-giver-by-lois-lowry-627398
https://slate.com/culture/2014/08/the-giver-banned-why-do-so-many-parents-try-to-remove-lois-lowrys-book-from-schools.html

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The story's been repeated for almost a hundred years: in 1931, Alice in Wonderland was banned in China because it depicts talking animals. But is the story even TRUE?? Adrianna and María put on our detective hats and examine the evidence. We also take a look at some AMAZING Chinese "Alice" sequels. Alice in China is willing to die to defend a music conference and apologies to Lewis Carroll but that's an improvement 💅

> Medium: "On Literary Censorship: Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland"
> Guardian: "Ten things you didn't know about Alice in Wonderland"
> Ripley's Believe it or Not: "Alice in Wonderland Was a Banned Book, But For a Weird Reason"
> The original 1931 New York Times article
> Anne Lyon Haight's "Banned Books"
> Sen Wong's article in the Lewis Carroll Newsletter
> Response detailing timing of Alice publications
> Paper on Chinese "Sequels" to Alice

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María and Adrianna do a deep dive into the pre-publication scandal surrounding Laura Moriarty's YA novel American Heart. Did the book deserve the online backlash? We read through some spicy goodreads comments, and María contemplates a career change.

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Sources:
>> trump allies’ statements on muslim registry x x
>> laura moriarty’s slate interview x
>> kirkus’ statement on the review change x
>> vulture interview with claiborne smith x
>> laura moriarty’s npr interview  x
>> new yorker article condemning the review change x

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This year has had some real unhinged *moments* in the book banning world, which tbh deserve their own awards. María and Adrianna bestow these honors in front of a totally real audience, commemorating 2023 with awards for Wildest Hate Group, Most Oppressive State, Worst Barbecue, and more. 

Happy holidays!

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What happens when a beloved children's classic has something problematic, outdated, or just plain boring in it -- and the author isn't around to fix it?  Sometimes editors take matters into their own hands. We discuss editing controversies involving Shakespeare, Roald Dahl, Doctor Seuss, and even Goosebumps, and Maria offers up a much better version of Twilight.

Sources:
> BBC: Roald Dahl: The fierce debate over rewriting children's classics
> NYT: The Truth About the ‘Censorship’ of Roald Dahl
> Smithsonian Magazine on Thomas and Henrietta Bowdler
> RL Stine editing controversy [x] [x]
> Edited "Night Before Christmas"

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Shel Silverstein was a beloved children’s book author, poet, illustrator, and f*ckboy.  Is The Giving Tree super misogynistic?  How much should an author’s life affect our judgment of his work?   How bad does your childhood have be to make you hate happy endings??  And … most importantly … would you?

Sources:
>Carnegie Mellon University's Banned Books Project
>LA Times
>Banned Books Awareness Blog Post
>Biography.com - Shel Silverstein
>"The Early Life of the Talented Shel Silverstein"
>New Yorker Retrospective

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We take a wild ride through the 1950’s American South, meeting a racist state senator, some hate groups, and a badass librarian ... all fighting over a couple of rabbits getting married in Garth Williams’ picture book The Rabbits’ Wedding.  Also in this episode: the undeniable body horror of Stuart Little.

cw: 1950’s American racism :(

Sources:

>Bookriot: "The Controversy of The Rabbit's Wedding by Garth Williams"
>New York Times: "Banned Bunnies" 

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For business inquiries: hello.tabook@gmail.com