1Cynfelyn
A story in today's Guardian:
"A 'great shock': Julianne Moore's children’s book under review by Trump administration
"The actor's book Freckleface Strawberry is on a list of library books suspended for a 'compliance review' after a presidential executive order. ... Julianne Moore has said it is a "great shock" to learn that one of her books had been "banned by the Trump Administration" from schools serving the children of US military personnel and civilian defence employees. ...
"Last Monday, the Department of Defense circulated a memo stating that it is examining library books "potentially related to gender ideology or discriminatory equity ideology topics". After access to all library books was suspended for a week for a review, a "small number of items" were identified and have been kept for "further review", it said. Moore's Freckleface Strawberry, a story about a girl who dislikes her freckles but learns to live with them, is among the books caught up in the blanket review, according to a list obtained by the Guardian. However, it is not known whether the title was selected for further review or for withdrawal."
The full story is at https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/feb/17/a-great-shock-julianne-moores-chil...
The Guardian's story on the DoD list, which does not say how many titles are on the list, lists one other title, Kathleen Krull, No truth without Ruth, a picture book for infants about the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the second woman to sit on the US supreme court, and mentions that Pentagon schools teach 67,000 children at 160 in seven US states and 11 countries, and is at https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/13/pentagon-schools-closed-librarie...
"A 'great shock': Julianne Moore's children’s book under review by Trump administration
"The actor's book Freckleface Strawberry is on a list of library books suspended for a 'compliance review' after a presidential executive order. ... Julianne Moore has said it is a "great shock" to learn that one of her books had been "banned by the Trump Administration" from schools serving the children of US military personnel and civilian defence employees. ...
"Last Monday, the Department of Defense circulated a memo stating that it is examining library books "potentially related to gender ideology or discriminatory equity ideology topics". After access to all library books was suspended for a week for a review, a "small number of items" were identified and have been kept for "further review", it said. Moore's Freckleface Strawberry, a story about a girl who dislikes her freckles but learns to live with them, is among the books caught up in the blanket review, according to a list obtained by the Guardian. However, it is not known whether the title was selected for further review or for withdrawal."
The full story is at https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/feb/17/a-great-shock-julianne-moores-chil...
The Guardian's story on the DoD list, which does not say how many titles are on the list, lists one other title, Kathleen Krull, No truth without Ruth, a picture book for infants about the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the second woman to sit on the US supreme court, and mentions that Pentagon schools teach 67,000 children at 160 in seven US states and 11 countries, and is at https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/13/pentagon-schools-closed-librarie...
2Dilara86
It looks like any children's book with characters that are not WASP, straight and male is a potential target. That's not to mention staff pre-emptively removing anything with a DEI flavour from reading lists and bookshelves, either out of fear of repercussions, or personal beliefs.
The Mary Sue has several articles about book bans (overt and "soft"), including:
‘Our situation is not hopeless’: Author Samira Ahmed shares her experiences and battles with book bans
"Their first response to her was, ‘There are no Muslim students and South Asian students at our school, so we don’t think this book should be here.’ This is not the first time I’ve ever heard something like that, and my response to being told that is always, well, you know, you probably have Lord of the Rings in your school library, and you don’t teach hobbits."
‘The reception of my books is different now’: Author Grace Lin on the reality of book bans and their impact
"When Lin first discovered her books were being banned, she didn’t initially believe it. However, the ban was real and an indicator of times to come. Lin explained, “I actually found out when someone tagged me on an Instagram reel. It was about the books being banned in York School District in PA—and it was showing my book A Big Mooncake for Little Star. I was pretty incredulous and thought it was some sort of social media hoax. I mean, I just didn’t see how A Big Mooncake for Little Star could be controversial—a little girl eating a big mooncake? But it wasn’t— in fact, it was just a harbinger of how book banning was becoming completely irrational.”"
The Mary Sue has several articles about book bans (overt and "soft"), including:
‘Our situation is not hopeless’: Author Samira Ahmed shares her experiences and battles with book bans
"Their first response to her was, ‘There are no Muslim students and South Asian students at our school, so we don’t think this book should be here.’ This is not the first time I’ve ever heard something like that, and my response to being told that is always, well, you know, you probably have Lord of the Rings in your school library, and you don’t teach hobbits."
‘The reception of my books is different now’: Author Grace Lin on the reality of book bans and their impact
"When Lin first discovered her books were being banned, she didn’t initially believe it. However, the ban was real and an indicator of times to come. Lin explained, “I actually found out when someone tagged me on an Instagram reel. It was about the books being banned in York School District in PA—and it was showing my book A Big Mooncake for Little Star. I was pretty incredulous and thought it was some sort of social media hoax. I mean, I just didn’t see how A Big Mooncake for Little Star could be controversial—a little girl eating a big mooncake? But it wasn’t— in fact, it was just a harbinger of how book banning was becoming completely irrational.”"
