Sunday, September 19, 2010

Words can't express this...

I wrote this post, when I heard that Ellen Hopkins was uninvited to an event and I was livid. Now someone compares the rape scenes in Speak to porn. I am more then angry and honestly wondering what the moral compass, does he think he has. My older sister was sexually abused, shortly after I was born and I still think that it could have been me. My mom was drugged twice in her twenties, but luckily had a friend there that noticed something was wrong, when my energetic mother was quiet. By the time, I was seven, my mom had drilled me to always get a new drink after I leave, if I am at a party or a bar.
In 2002, I was eleven, and my mom came home with three books for one for her, one for my sister and one for me, not just any book, Speak. We read the book together and I will admit that I may have skipped ahead, when she was working. I was really shy, then. I wouldn't talk unless I was forced to, Melinda Sordino's silence may have been for a difference reason, but she was the first character that I could relate to and her voice helped me find my own. Laurie Halse Anderson is an amazing writer. Speak is a realistic portrayal of high school and also of rape and how hard it is to raise your voice. Her other Young Adult books deal with serious issues in life, that not just teens can relate to, but anyone can. I met her, while she was on tour for Wintergirls, and I can honestly say that she is a remarkable person.
In the same post, Wesley Scroggins also targeted Slaughterhouse-Five and Twenty Boy Summer. Slaughterhouse-Five was removed, for rather unusual reasons(Do they seriously not read the book?). Twenty Boy Summer is being reviewed, because of drinking at a party and having sex and using a condom. I know that drinking at teen parties happens, some of my friends have facebook pictures with this. And I also though that safe sex was a good thing. Writing is suppose to be realistic, and Twenty Boy Summer is about grief and trying to move on after something happens.

I would also like to say that both of my parents are both very conservative Christians. They don't believe in censoring the books that I read, because they rather have me reading about it now, then experiencing it later. My parents have bought me all three books mentioned above and my mom had read all three and my dad has read one. I am sorry if this post offended anyone.

Here is Laurie Halse Anderson's post.

6 comments:

  1. Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us! I think you've done a fabulous job of articulating why books with challenging topics are so important. It's awesome to see so many people supporting this awesome YA novel!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Awesome post, Sarah! Thanks for not being silent! Everyone - teens and adults - need to SpeakLoudly for what is right - and censorship is definitely 'not right'! *hugs*

    ReplyDelete
  3. Fantastic post! I love seeing more and more of these today! It sickens me too that anyone would refer to the rape scenes in Speak as porn. I'm so sorry for your sister, I couldn't even imagine. I think it's wonderful that your parents are avid in your reading!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I love how your parents don't fit the norm when people think of conservative Christians. Thanks for speaking out about this very important topic Sarah!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Great post, Sarah, although I'm sorry to hear about what your sister has been through :(

    ReplyDelete
  6. That Wesley Scroggins sounds like a prude. I guess he's never heard of a "teachable moment". And he's crazy if he thinks eighth-graders are actually being introduced to things like homosexuality and oral sex in school. I think they already know about those things!

    This sounds like a very different school district than the one around here. Yeah, sure, they tried to ban children's books about kids with two daddies... but in high school, we got plenty of sex ed and had to read books about women getting raped and guys getting their penises blown off (Hardy and Hemingway, respectively... *gasp* Classics!).

    Censorship sucks. The school shouldn't be dictating what kids read and learn when it comes to these issues... especially if they're going to avoid teaching them about very important things.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for visiting. Every comment creates a smile.

LinkWithin

Blog Widget by LinkWithin