Hmm, now that I think about it, why don't we have a rating system for books? If every video game, cd, and movie gets one why not books?

Wouldn't that prevent all this sort of nonsense?..Well not the crazys, but the controversy.

I can see it now...

"The contents of this book are straight forward, honest, and may contain references to aspects of sexuality you're currently repressing. Get over it."

Actually, I'd agree with Gammerus on this one. There should be a rating system. When a 5-year-old can check out a publication with nudity and sex there is something gone slightly askew.

I have no problem with young teens or adults reading this and learning about it, but the fact that there is absolutely NO control implemented worries me slightly. Not enough to try to ban (or burn) books or picket my local library, just think some common sense should go into place at an institution of learning.

I wouldn't complain as long as long as this involves spending 'quality time' at the library...

Any book deemed inappropriate for children will then be moved to a back room filled with dim smoky light and a beaded curtain in the door way.

Uhhh....No. PARENTS should review what their child reads. 5 year olds shouldn't be wandering around unsupervised. If you don't want YOUR child to read something, do your fricking job as a parent and keep them from reading it. Don't put a label on it like this sort of thing is dirty or wrong.

That wouldn't work all that well either, many children check out books at their school library with no adult supervision. and it is reasonable to assume books for 9th graders may not be suitable for 3rd graders.

School libraries already have restrictions regarding what books they stock. I'd hazard a guess that any library serving that diverse an age group is also fairly small, and as such, the librarian represents guidance and books are sorted according to age.

Do you really think that a 3rd grader encountering a book with a label saying 'not appropriate for 3rd graders' is going to put it back? What does the label accomplish?

The label is not just for the person who is getting the book, but for the people who are responsible for the book and the people who are responsible for the child.

A grandparent may not know if "Snoop Doggs" lyrics are appropriate, but they can look at a label and know instantly, BEFORE they buy it.

A librarian may not review every book in their library, it would take a phenomenal effort to read EVERY book and remember what contents it has, but reading a sticker that says "Young Adult" is easy for them to do.

The library basically says here, 'If we carry Madonna's 'SEX' book, then your 3 year old is allowed to check it out." And no, I don't think this book is porn or smut. I think it has adult themes and illustrations that aren't meant for all audiences.

Giving a child a picture of two people 'in the act' can't be.. well.. Legal. But allowing a child to check out a book which has not only the act, but pictures, descriptions, and adult themes is.. library policy? "Not our problem?"

This lady went about it the wrong way. She shouldn't have checked out the book in the first place, she should have gone through the proper channels to voice her opinion of the book and suggest other books to fill it's place. And yes, the library SHOULD have books covering this topic in a frank and honest manner. But I still contend that not all of the library's patrons need access to that book.

Books are already sorted according to age appropriateness. That doesn't change anything, other than to add additional work (and cost) for printers. It's still the parents responsibility to verify what their child is reading.

I can't help but wonder if you work in a public library. I do, and your comments are pretty much identical to what I believe.

I spent a lot of time in libraries growing up, and I have a friend who is a librarian currently. :)

Not to come across as flaming anyone, but...........

I have to say that I totally disagree with both ideas.

As a mom I have to say that 5 years olds don't normally get to check out their own books without a parent checking them first. But if a 5 year old was looking at a book as described in the story, I would hope the parents would take this time to go head and use this as a clue that it's time to start talking about questions they might have.


As for this book only being set for young teens and adults, I'm pretty sure that was not the target audience ment for this book. That would be too late.

Rating systems are put in place to warn about violence and vulgarity. A book to teach about health is not vulgar. Snoop Dog and Grand Theft Auto are.

If something good has come out of this case, it's the increased interest in the book. What have the actions of this moron caused? The book is being replaced, and more people are interested in loaning it. She's just shooting herself in the foot.

If books were rated as suggested, I wonder how would the bible be rated?

This story is from a year ago. I realize it's not a dupe after that long or anything... I am posting this comment mostly because I'm from Maine and I don't want people to think this kind of asshattery had happened here twice in one year.

The Old Testament would surely be rated R, the Christian's "New Testament" is a much tamer version. :) ..but still PG-13 at the least!

The bottom line is this chic is a full blown nut-job. I can see a perspective to protect innocence even if I don't believe that's the best choice. It's still a rational concept that I can respect. But SHE said: "The truth is the contents of the book in question leads to a lot of misery, pain, lack of freedom, and often death,"

Whose truth? Who died? Unfortunetely she survived reading it. ..and what the hell made her take it home in the first place other than to piss herself off?! ...and why is she responsible for my morals?

If you want to fight youth corruption work on the internet porn industry and it's control of free content and pop-up ads. More kids surf than read a book.

"The truth is the contents of the book in question leads to a lot of misery, pain, lack of freedom, and often death," Karkos wrote.


What???? How does a book about your changing body result in misery, pain, lack of freedom and DEATH???? OMG, that has to be the most idiotic statement ever. Its a great way to teach a child about how his/her body is changing and to teach them about reproduction. They need to know that having sex can lead to babies. I bought my son a book on pregnancy when I was pregnant with my last kid because he started asking questions about how the baby will come out. Now, I did avoid the books with all the illustrations of parts and sex, but the one I got had pictures of a developing fetus. I just didnt feel my son was ready for the FULL talk. I am glad there are books out there that teach kids about all this. They need to learn eventually, that way when they are a teen they dont go out having sex and not realize it can lead to pregnancy (young teens I mean).

I could never understand how some people believed that barring the topic of sex from kids would keep them from having sex. Especially parents who do this; you would think that after observing constant examples of a child's abundant curiosity, they would realize that if you tell them don't look, they're going to be more inclined to do so. I'm not saying give them the gun and assume they'll figure it out. Instead, educate, answer questions, help them make the right choices.

That was the age my son got his first sex ed book written specifically for that age. Lots of nudity, etc... I had to translate it to him because it was written in German. My daughter had a different sex ed book at 7, for same reason also in German.
Whats the problem with nudity?
Have you ever heard of nudist beaches?