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'Twilight' stakes a claim among the most 'challenged' books
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Stephenie Meyer's "Twilight" series is a worldwide phenomenon, with millions of copies in print, two hit movie adaptations, at least two more on the way, and merchandise ranging from T-shirts to body pillows.Apparently some people aren't too happy about all that.
The "Twilight" series made the American Library Association's list of the most frequently challenged books of 2009. The group tracks formal complaints filed against libraries and schools from people who, for whatever reason, want a book removed from shelves. Despite its reputation as a relatively chaste human-vampire romance, the series has drawn complaints for being "sexually explicit" and "unsuited to age group."
On the other hand, it also drew challenges for its "religious viewpoint." So which is it, stiflers of free expression?
No. 1 on the library association's 2009 list is the "IM" series by Lauren Myracle -- books written as a series of instant-message conversations between three teenage friends and involve sex and drugs as well as the usual high-school drama. "And Tango Makes Three," a children's book about two male penguins who are given an egg to care for -- and which is based on a true story of two penguins at the Central Park Zoo in New York -- is No. 2.
Classics like "Catcher in the Rye," "To Kill a Mockingbird" and "The Color Purple" are also on the hit list.
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Photo credit: Little, Brown
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SO STUPID!!! And not the books. The dumbasses who think they should be pulled off shelves. These books aren't teaching kids how to build bombs. If you don't like it, don't read it. Don't ruin it for the rest of us. Just STFU and read your Glenn Beck fantasy stories.
Maybe it's because of how purely terrible they are?
I agree that Twilight should be burned for its poor grammar, dull prose, and complete lack of any complex sentences.
Painfully boring, poorly edited...yes
"sexually explicit"...not so much
Daytime tv is racier on a bad day then those 4 books combined. The things that get peoples panties in a bunch most of the time is just insane.
Twilight's on the list because of the terrible grammar, terrible storyline, and boring characters. Two year olds write better than Meyer does.
Don't care for the books or anything but its stupid to try to get any book banned from anywhere. People need to chill out more.
the first threee arent too explicit but even hardcore twilight fans like jetta have to admit the scenes in the fourth book of edward having sex with bella til she faints and all the pregnancy scenes are very graphic, and not suitable for people below the age of 14. And thats being generous. And lots of girls younger than that age read twilight. The other books have some disturbing content in terms of the subtle sexism at play but the only other instance of graphic issues i can think of is the girl who was mauled by her werewolf boyfriend in new moon. but thats a brief reference. the books are maybe challenged becasue of the abusive relationship between the characters maybe.