An empowering and critically timely blueprint for action.
Sixteen prominent writers for young people offer teens a comprehensive picture of what’s at stake when books disappear from schools and libraries.
Effectively combining essays, graphic narratives, and short stories, this anthology offers young adults the tools they need as they advocate for their right to read. Maia Kobabe lays the groundwork with graphic representations of book censorship by the numbers, highlighting the exponential increase over the last several years. The subsequent section, “Book Ban FAQs,” provides important background knowledge and common language. A recurring theme is the power of books to help us realize we’re not alone in the circumstances we face. Elana K. Arnold’s autobiographical “The Things, the Things That Happened, the Things That Happened to Me” is a heart-wrenching example, cutting through the silence of rape culture. Isabel Quintero and Ellen Hopkins muse on knowledge as power while Traci Sorell takes on the erasure of Native peoples from history and literature. Kyle Lukoff connects book censorship to efforts to erase problematic history. Kelly Jensen’s “Our Whole Radical Anatomy” introduces readers to the legalities of book censorship. Robin Stevenson touches on the effects of self-censoring. Brendan Kiely’s and Padma Venkatraman’s short stories offer fictionalized accounts of teens affected by censorship efforts. Editor Pérez introduces readers to teens around the country who are taking action to ensure their freedom to read and provides tips, reading suggestions, and other resources. Together these diverse contributors’ voices form a potent whole.
An empowering and critically timely blueprint for action. (select sources) (Anthology. 13-18)Pub Date: March 4, 2025
ISBN: 9780823458301
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: Nov. 23, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2025
Small but mighty necessary reading.
A miniature manifesto for radical queer acceptance that weaves together the personal and political.
Eli, a cis gay white Jewish man, uses his own identities and experiences to frame and acknowledge his perspective. In the prologue, Eli compares the global Jewish community to the global queer community, noting, “We don’t always get it right, but the importance of showing up for other Jews has been carved into the DNA of what it means to be Jewish. It is my dream that queer people develop the same ideology—what I like to call a Global Queer Conscience.” He details his own isolating experiences as a queer adolescent in an Orthodox Jewish community and reflects on how he and so many others would have benefitted from a robust and supportive queer community. The rest of the book outlines 10 principles based on the belief that an expectation of mutual care and concern across various other dimensions of identity can be integrated into queer community values. Eli’s prose is clear, straightforward, and powerful. While he makes some choices that may be divisive—for example, using the initialism LGBTQIAA+ which includes “ally”—he always makes clear those are his personal choices and that the language is ever evolving.
Small but mighty necessary reading. (resources) (Nonfiction. 14-18)Pub Date: June 2, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-09368-9
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: March 28, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2020
A powerful reminder of a history that is all too timely today.
A beautifully heart-wrenching graphic-novel adaptation of actor and activist Takei’s (Lions and Tigers and Bears, 2013, etc.) childhood experience of incarceration in a World War II camp for Japanese Americans.
Takei had not yet started school when he, his parents, and his younger siblings were forced to leave their home and report to the Santa Anita Racetrack for “processing and removal” due to President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Executive Order 9066. The creators smoothly and cleverly embed the historical context within which Takei’s family’s story takes place, allowing readers to simultaneously experience the daily humiliations that they suffered in the camps while providing readers with a broader understanding of the federal legislation, lawsuits, and actions which led to and maintained this injustice. The heroes who fought against this and provided support to and within the Japanese American community, such as Fred Korematsu, the 442nd Regiment, Herbert Nicholson, and the ACLU’s Wayne Collins, are also highlighted, but the focus always remains on the many sacrifices that Takei’s parents made to ensure the safety and survival of their family while shielding their children from knowing the depths of the hatred they faced and danger they were in. The creators also highlight the dangerous parallels between the hate speech, stereotyping, and legislation used against Japanese Americans and the trajectory of current events. Delicate grayscale illustrations effectively convey the intense emotions and the stark living conditions.
A powerful reminder of a history that is all too timely today. (Graphic memoir. 14-adult)Pub Date: July 16, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-60309-450-4
Page Count: 208
Publisher: Top Shelf Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 4, 2019
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