How to get 10-year-old boys to use the school library...

[tokyonambu]

You had to be 9 to read Narnia (same age as the first 2 Potters) - I don't remember anyone asking for Narnia earlier - we had a lot of requests for Potter.
I do recall having to have agreement letters for Michael Morpurgo and Jacqueline Wilson - and 1 boy wanting us to buy a copy of "The Cider House Rules."

And yet, had the child simply gone up the road to the public library, no such system would have been in place. You had to have a process of reading the books, agreeing criteria (you did have criteria, didn't you?), managing the letters, sorting out the anomalies (did you do it by school year or by birthday?) and generally erecting an incredibly complex system to deal with the problem that, what? A couple of parents on the fringes of opinion might complain? Wouldn't dealing with the complaints (Arkell vs Pressdram might be going a little far) be less effort than erecting a system like this? Indeed, wouldn't having an opt-out system (ie, "we will lend your children books from the library unless you explicitly ask to be placed on a watchlist") be easier? I can't imagine more than a handful of parents would take up that offer.

A school library pretty much by definition doesn't contain a full set of de Sade and Histoire d'O in the original (although some cats were put amongst pigeons by the middle-school, year 9 and 10 in new money, at my comprehensive putting a complete set of Wilson and Shea's Illuminatus! on the shelves, replete with a wide variety of ******** acts of dubious morality and in some cases legality, under the rubric of "Science Fiction"). That risk exists when buying books from adult publishing houses, but children's publishing houses who provide 99% of the books in primary libraries don't offer that risk. Having a complex system of self-done rating, based on probably little more than gut feel, seems a strange response. Books are obviously very dangerous, and need to be kept under strict control: Lollardy lurks everywhere.

[scarlett]

Well, I used to just position myself behind a large pillar in our school library and then read/look at all the unsuitable books passed to me by the older girls. ....oh, and also on the school bus.Actually, now I think of it I seem to remember also chucking certain books under a bookcase which served as a wall and then retrieving them once I'd left the library.

[yoyo123]

don;t forget looking up rude words in the dictionary....

[scarlett]

Those were the good times !! Too much tv now, I think.

[yoyo123]

ee , we made our own entertainment then......

[Marylou]

And yet, had the child simply gone up the road to the public library, no such system would have been in place.

Not strictly true - one of my DDs was not allowed to take a certain book out of our local library that was on her school reading list (can't remember which one) unless she upgraded her membership to "young adult" category.

I haven't actually read anything by Phillip Pullmann but welcome the feedback. I can understand concerns about certain authors, even if they are writing with a particular age group in mind. I've only ever read a couple of things by Malorie Blackman - excellent and thought-provoking in their way, but they left me feeling thoroughly depressed.

[mystery]

What are some schools frightened of? They'll come up with some time consuming system like that for whingeing parents, but if a parent had a genuine academic concern that affected a raft of children they'd rather curl up and die than be seen to agree with the parent.

It does sound the most fantastic way of encouraging reading though. Rationing always creates desire. They used to use this principle in our school reception and never give children reading scheme books that they could read at home. It will be interesting to see if the desire to read lessens now that they do give out books regularly and ask the parents to listen to the children.

[scarlett]

Not strictly true - one of my DDs was not allowed to take a certain book out of our local library that was on her school reading list (can't remember which one) unless she upgraded her membership to "young adult" category.

Yes, I remember the draconian ladies at my public library , would take ages checking the books I'd chosen and I really wanted to read a book about a family living through a nuclear war and I wasn't allowed ...even though it was in the childrens section.Once they wanted to ring up my mother to check a particular book was acceptable and I wasn't exactly piling up hundreds of Mills and Boon on the counter.

[tokyonambu]

I've only ever read a couple of things by Malorie Blackman - excellent and thought-provoking in their way, but they left me feeling thoroughly depressed.

A list of books that have been banned at various times by US school libraries: http://www.csulb.edu/library/subj/banned.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Interesting (albeit in my view unhinged) rant on the topic (damned kids, get off my lawn) here in the WSJ this month.

Excellent response in Salon.

That "adult" aspect of reading is scary for many of us. It's our job as parents to protect our kids, even as they slowly move out into the world and further away from our dictates. But there's something almost comical about raising them with tales of big bad wolves and poisoned apples, and then deciding at a certain point that literature is too "dark" for them to handle. Kids are smarter than that. And a kid who is lucky enough to give a damn about the value of reading knows the transformative power of books.

A teenager (they claim: see here) writes in response, too.

[tokyonambu]

Not strictly true - one of my DDs was not allowed to take a certain book out of our local library that was on her school reading list (can't remember which one) unless she upgraded her membership to "young adult" category.

Yes, I remember the draconian ladies at my public library , would take ages checking the books I'd chosen and I really wanted to read a book about a family living through a nuclear war and I wasn't allowed

Given the claim is made that is to prevent parents complaining, it would be interesting to see their reaction were a parent to complain about overt censorship of the lending by public libraries. As it would have no legal basis, nor would the library be able to provide any policy, appeal process, criteria or documentation as to how they implement this, it would make for some entertainment.