The board of the Newport Beach Public Library will review on Monday, April 15, the first two books in the children’s section being questioned by patrons under a new policy for appropriate content.
Where previously the library director had the final say when a review of materials was requested, a policy added earlier this year allows for an appeal to the library’s Board of Trustees. The policy was established following an increase this fall in requests for material reviews, a city spokesperson said.
Four patrons have requested reviews of “Melissa,” by Alex Gino, and “Prince & Knight,” by Daniel Haack, asking they be removed from the children’s section and placed in an adult reading section.
“Melissa,” first published as “George” in 2015, has been deemed appropriate by library staff for children in grades three through seven under the library’s Collection Development Policy, and “Prince & Knight” as a picture book for children from preschool through kindergarten. Both books are available in many of the other Orange County public library children sections, the city’s library director has said.
Library Director Melissa Hartson and her staff will have an opportunity to explain to the board their decision to retain the books where they are and to detail how they were selected per the library’s Collection Development Policy, which seeks to provide breadth and depth, various points of view and differing formats, Hartson said
The library endeavors to balance materials of permanent value with those of current interest, Hartson said. Materials are selected based on their content as a whole, not on selected excerpts, and the race, nationality or political, social, moral or religious views of an author will not affect the selection of materials, she said.
The board could also decide to remove the books from the library entirely.
If it did, Hartson said it would be the first time a book has been removed due to “questionable content.” In 2004, “Gossip Girl,” by Cecily von Ziegesar, was challenged and the board considered an appeal in a one-time case, upholding the library director’s decision to keep the book in the collection.
In Huntington Beach, a City Council majority in October adopted an ordinance creating a 21-member community board that will review children’s books in circulation for sexual content and can decide to move them to a restricted section of the library and also block the library from purchasing new books. The council majority already had the city’s librarians move books containing sexual content away from the children’s section.
Eight books in the children’s section at the Newport Beach Library have been appealed to the library board under the new policy.
The books were first brought to the library staff’s attention through a policy allowing patrons concerned about specific titles to submit a “patron’s request” for evaluation of library resources. In this process, library staff evaluate the material and send recommendation to the director, who responds to the patron in writing.
With the new appeals process, a patron who disagrees with the library services director’s decision may ask the trustees for a final resolution.
In the case of “Melissa,” three patrons detailed their concerns about the book, which tells the story of a transgender fourth-grader. The American Library Association says “Melissa” was one of the most challenged books from 2016 to 2020.
Similarly, “Prince & Knight,” published in 2018, has also been frequently challenged, according to the American Library Association, for its content depicting gay marriage and LGBTQ issues.
The four patrons appealing the books argue their contents don’t fit in the children’s section, voicing concerns about the depiction of sex, hiding things from parents and not being age appropriate, among others issues.
“It is absurd that a child could be walking either with a parent or school group and run into the book and be subject to inappropriate material,” one patron wrote in their appeal. “This book needs to be moved out of any section targeting minors.”
Hartson declined to comment on the books being appealed, but in her response to one of the petitions to “Melissa” wrote that “the criteria fits within the children’s collection parameters and 30 other OC libraries include this book in their children’s fiction collection.” She also added that “tastes are individualized and subjective.”
The meeting on Monday will be held in the City Council Chambers and begins at 4:30 p.m.
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