You Can't Say That!: Writers for Young People Talk About Censorship, Free Expression, and the Stories They Have to Tell

by Leonard S. Marcus (Editor), Matt de la Peña (Contribution by), Robie H. Harris (Contribution by), Susan Kuklin (Contribution by), David Levithan (Contribution by)

Overview

What happens when freedom of expression comes under threat? In frank and wide-ranging interviews, historian and critic Leonard S. Marcus probes the experience of thirteen leading authors of books for young people.

A powerful photo essay on transgender teens is called anti-religious and anti-family. A meticulously researched primer on sex education stirs up accusations of pornography and child abuse. Picture books about two mommies (or two penguin daddies) set off a hue and cry. Two hugely popular children’s series run afoul of would-be censors, one for its scatological humor, the other because it’s deemed too scary. Kids’ books that touch on race, sex, LGBTQ matters, the occult, “coarse language,” and more have found themselves under the scrutiny of those who challenge First Amendment rights.

Tune in as thirteen top children’s and young adult authors speak out about what it’s like to have your work banned or challenged in America today. Prompted by Leonard S. Marcus’s insightful questions, they discuss why their books have faced censorship—both blatant and “soft”—how the challenges have or haven’t affected their writing, and why some people feel they have the right to deny access to books. In addition, Leonard S. Marcus puts First Amendment challenges in a historical context and takes a promising look at the vibrant support network that has risen up to protect and defend young people’s rights.

Authors interviewed include:
Matt de la Peña
Robie H. Harris
Susan Kuklin
David Levithan
Meg Medina
Lesléa Newman
Katherine Paterson
Dav Pilkey
Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell
Sonya Sones
R. L. Stine
Angie Thomas.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780763698522
Publisher:	Candlewick Press
Publication date:	07/13/2021
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	17 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	10 Years

About the Author

Leonard S. Marcus is one of the world’s leading writers about children’s books and the people who create them. He is the award-winning author of more than twenty-five books, including Show Me a Story! Why Picture Books Matter; Dear Genius: The Letters of Ursula Nordstrom; The Wand in the Word: Conversations with Writers of Fantasy; Funny Business: Conversations with Writers of Comedy; and Comics Confidential: Thirteen Graphic Novelists Talk Story, Craft, and Life Outside the Box. His essays, interviews, and reviews appear in the New York Times Book Review and Horn Book magazine. A founding trustee of the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art, he teaches at New York University and the School of Visual Arts and lectures about his work across the world. He lives in Brooklyn, New York.

“I wanted my kids to stay healthy, so I had to give them accurate information,” said Robie H. Harris (1940–2024), whose training and deep interest in child development—and experience as a parent—made her realize how difficult but necessary it is to answer kids’ questions about sex. Consultations with other parents, kids, educators, doctors, psychologists, and scientists confirmed the critical need for books like It’s Perfectly Normal, It’s So Amazing!, and It’s Not The Stork!, all illustrated by Michael Emberley. Used as trusted resources around the world, these definitive books—known collectively as The Family Library—answer kids’ questions about sex and sexual health in a manner that assures even the most squeamish reader that “it’s perfectly normal.”

Robie H. Harris used her expertise in child development in numerous picture books as well. About Happy Birth Day!, illustrated by Michael Emberley, she said, “This is a story my children asked me to tell them over and over again when they were young. I think they loved hearing about all the things they could do on the day they were born.” Hi New Baby!, also illustrated by Michael Emberley, was another book inspired by her own children. “When my older child met his new baby brother, he was full of feelings—excitement and disappointment when he finally saw the baby, surprise that the new baby was so tiny, upset when the baby cried, bored when the baby slept, angry that he was no longer the baby, and proud when he realized that he could make the baby stop crying.”

Robie H. Harris tackled a common bugaboo faced by parents and children in Don’t Forget to Come Back!, illustrated by New Yorker cartoonist Harry Bliss. The all-too-familiar tale wisely and wittily captures the many emotions children face when parents go out—and a babysitter comes in.

In more recent years, Robie H. Harris authored a series of books known as the Let’s Talk About You and Me series, providing easy-to-understand facts and answers to kids’ delightful, thoughtful, and often nonstop questions. Illustrated by Nadine Bernard Westcott, these include Who Has What? All About Girls’ Bodies and Boys’ Bodies; Who’s in My Family? All About Our Families; and What’s in There? All About Before You Were Born.

In addition to being an award-winning author, Robie H. Harris was a popular speaker around the country. A graduate of Wheaton College and the Bank Street College of Education, Robie H. Harris had plenty of hands-on experience working with kids, including as director of an early childhood after-school program and as a teacher. She also co-produced and directed Child’s Eye View, a film on the daily life of children in Hell’s Kitchen, and had professional affiliations too numerous to count.

I was lucky. When I was a kid my family introduced me to art, theater, and books. Dinner talk often centered around the idea of social justice for all. I listened—and wanted to know more. My dream, though, was to become a ballerina or a stage actress. After high school I moved to New York, where I majored in theater at New York University. Becoming a character in a play was so much fun. It was not that I didn’t like being me, I was simply curious to know what it was like to be someone else. Then my uncle bought a Leica camera, and my life changed. Together we began exploring the world through the lens of his camera. Somehow the combination of theater arts and photography helped me develop into a nonfiction author. Go figure.

Beyond Magenta brings together so many things that are deep inside my bones: social justice, photography, and interpreting the lives of diverse human beings. I’ve learned so much from the wonderful teens in my book. With their help, I continue to grow.

Meg Medina, the 2023­­­­–2024 National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature,is a Cuban American author who writes for readers of all ages. Her middle-grade novel Merci Suárez Changes Gears received a Newbery Medal and was a New York Times Book Review Notable Children’s Book of the Year, among many other distinctions. Its sequel, Merci Suárez Can’t Dance, received five starred reviews, while Merci Suárez Plays It Cool received four stars, with Kirkus Reviews calling it “a fabulous finale to a memorable trilogy.” Her most recent picture book, Evelyn Del Rey Is Moving Away, received honors including a Charlotte Zolotow Award and was the 2020 Jumpstart Read for the Record selection, reaching 2.24 million readers. She received a Pura Belpré Author Award Honor for her picture book Mango, Abuela, and Me. Her young adult novel Burn Baby Burn earned numerous distinctions, including being long-listed for the National Book Award and short-listed for the Kirkus Prize. Meg Medina received a Pura Belpré Author Award and a Cybils Award for her young adult novel Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass, which has been adapted and illustrated as a graphic novel by Mel Valentine Vargas. She also received an Ezra Jack Keats Writer Award for her picture book Tía Isa Wants a Car.

Meg Medina’s work examines how cultures and identity intersect through the eyes of young people, and she brings audiences stories that speak to both what is culturally specific and what is universal. Her favorite protagonists are strong girls.

When she is not writing, Meg Medina works on community projects that support girls, Latino youth, and literacy. She lives with her family in Richmond, Virginia.

Lesléa Newman is the author of more than sixty books for children and adults, including the 2013 Stonewall Honor Book October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard.


I grew up in Brooklyn, New York, and on Long Island, and I have been writing poems and stories ever since I can remember. The first thing I ever published was a poem I wrote when I was a teenager, which appeared in Seventeen magazine. I studied poetics at a school in Boulder, Colorado, called Naropa Institute (now Naropa University), and where I worked with Allen Ginsberg, one of my heroes. I now live in Massachusetts with my spouse, Mary Vazquez, and our cat Princess Sheba Darling (who is very spoiled). When I am not writing, I am wishing I was writing! I also read a lot, do crossword puzzles, go to movies and plays, weed the garden, and play with the cat (when she’ll let me). In addition to writing, I travel around the country, visiting high schools, colleges, libraries, and other community settings to speak out against anti-gay bullying.

I have published more than sixty books for readers of all ages on all types of subjects. Often I’m asked which of my books is my favorite. I always answer, “The one I haven’t written yet!” My poetry collection, October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard, is a book that’s very dear to my heart and very important to me. If reading this book stops even one kid from bullying another, I will feel like I have done my job. I wrote the book by writing a poem a day for more than two months, and then going back over them to revise, revise, revise. I also did a lot of research: I read books, looked at videos, talked to people, studied the Matthew Shepard archives at the University of Wyoming, and visited the site where the hate crime that killed Matt took place.

Three Things You Might Not Know About Me:

1. I have a green belt in karate (Shuri-Ryu style).

2. I can turn a canoe on a dime (using a J-stroke or C-stroke).

3. I was once a clue in a New York Times crossword puzzle.

Table of Contents

Introduction ix

Matt De La Peña 1

Robie H. Harris 17

Susan Kuklin 41

David Levithan 61

Meg Medina 75

Lesléa Newman 89

Katherine Paterson 107

Dav Pilkey 126

Justin Richardson And Peter Parnell 142

Sonya Sones 159

R. L. Stine 173

Angie Thomas 187

Acknowledgments 203

Source Notes 205

Selected Reading 209

Index 213

Editorial Reviews

★ 07/26/2021

Marcus’s 13 interviews with writers whose works have provoked controversy deliver more than the book’s title suggests, beginning with an introduction that traces the history of censorship back to attempts at “regulating moral behavior” in ancient Greece and Rome. Conversations exploring the writers’ childhoods and creative lives evolve gracefully into discussions of censorship experiences, including highly publicized challenges to works such as Lesléa Newman’s Heather Has Two Mommies in 1990, and Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell’s And Tango Makes Three in 2005. Readers may be surprised to learn that several of Katherine Paterson’s books were banned for their “gutter and unholy language” or featuring a sibling’s “hateful feelings,” or that Dav Pilkey’s Captain Underpants series regularly tops banned books lists for its “violence” and “offensive language.” Many interviews highlight the crucial role of librarians in fighting for public access to books, though the collection does not cover why some may object to texts on reasonable grounds, such as detrimental portrayals of marginalized people. Still, this is a thoughtful examination of the barriers young people may face when seeking “polemical” reading material, with high crossover appeal. Back matter includes source notes, selected reading, and an index. Ages 10–up. (July)

Publishers Weekly

'You Can’t Say That,' a collection of interviews conducted by the children’s literature expert Leonard S. Marcus, offers an antidote to the censors, elevating the voices of 13 authors whose books for kids have been challenged. Marcus probes not just what made these works controversial, but also the life paths that led the writers to pursue their subjects, and how they reacted to campaigns to muzzle their work — all of which are sure to interest their young fans, as well as students of free speech.
—The New York Times Book Review

Each conversation is frank and utterly engrossing. Familiarity with the banned books discussed is not necessary to be absorbed in the discussions, which will certainly send readers to seek out the titles. Librarians and lovers of youth literature will feel like they are a part of conversations between old friends and gain new understanding into the value of their everyday work.
—School Library Journal (starred review)

Conversations exploring the writers’ childhoods and creative lives evolve gracefully into discussions of censorship experiences. . . Many interviews highlight the crucial role of librarians in fighting for public access to books. . . this is a thoughtful examination of the barriers young people may face when seeking “polemical” reading material, with high crossover appeal.
—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Marcus begins his book with an informative and enlightening Introduction that charts the history of censorship and then proceeds to the interviews. . . . Marcus has clearly done his homework, his questions and comments reflecting wide reading of each of his subject’s work. . . . Marcus’ book is essential reading for all of those who treasure free speech.
—Booklist (starred review)

Thirteen prominent authors of children’s and young adult literature talk about one thing they all have in common: All have been the targets of attempts to ban or remove their work from schools and libraries. . . . A calm, cohesive take on a hot-button issue.
—Kirkus Reviews

Marcus, author of many great interviews for The Horn Book Magazine, here compiles interviews with thirteen authors of books that have created what the great John Lewis called “good trouble.”. . . In all cases, Marcus provides welcome context in each author’s work and life as a whole, demonstrating that intellectual freedom is a right that permeates all creative work.
—The Horn Book

Hurt, aghast, defensive, baffled, dismissive, defiant: these are feelings authors might have about a challenge to their work, and here Marcus interviews thirteen writers who have been down this emotionally fraught road to probe how defense of their right to write and readers’ right to read is vital to democracy. Highlighted are books and authors that middle to upper graders will recognize, such as Meg Medina, Robie Harris, and David Levithan, but regardless of familiarity readers will contrast the individuality of authors’ sensitivities and priorities—there’s nuance, for example, on #ownvoices, on moving rather than removing library books, on what constitutes self-censorship, on whether subsequent editions should be revised.
—The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

This title focuses on thirteen children's and YA authors whose works have been challenged, banned, and/or generally condemned by individuals or groups due to their treatment and/or inclusion of race, sex, sexual orientation, language, "crude" humor, scariness, and more. . . . Marcus does not shy away from discussions of "soft" censorship—the reality that sometimes books are not purchased by individual teachers or librarians because they lack the confidence, comfort, or courage to defend what might be deemed as controversial material.
—School Library Connection

From the Publisher

★ 07/01/2021

Gr 7 Up—This work is a compilation of conversations Marcus had with writers of children's and YA titles that have been included on the American Library Association's lists of most banned books. Authors featured include some of the biggest names in youth literature such as R.L. Stine, Angie Thomas, Dav Pilkey, and Katherine Paterson. The book covers well-known, frequently banned titles such as Heather Has Two Mommies, It's Perfectly Normal, and Bridge to Terabithia, and some that readers might not expect, such as the works of Matt de la Peña and Meg Medina. Marcus prefaces each conversation with a brief, interesting summary of the author's life and work. Conversations cover the authors' experiences of how their books came to be banned and their reactions, often including stories of their involvement in fighting the censorship. Each conversation is frank and utterly engrossing. Familiarity with the banned books discussed is not necessary to be absorbed in the discussions, which will certainly send readers to seek out the titles. Librarians and lovers of youth literature will feel like they are a part of conversations between old friends and gain new understanding into the value of their everyday work. Those studying censorship will find important primary sources and gain useful insight on how harmful censorship can be to young lives. Marcus also includes a concise, informative history of censorship and banned books in the United States. VERDICT This important work is highly recommended for all libraries serving teens and scholars.—Karen Bilton, Franklin Township P.L., NJ

School Library Journal

2021-05-17
Thirteen prominent authors of children’s and young adult literature talk about one thing they all have in common: All have been the targets of attempts to ban or remove their work from schools and libraries.

Editor Marcus, a noted scholar who interviewed each writer, focuses his introduction on the history of censorship, including a simplistic summation of controversies around Adventures of Huckleberry Finn that spells out the N-word. Each author discusses their work, their personal history, and the reasons why they’ve been censored. Some, like Robie H. Harris and Susan Kuklin, came under attack for discussing sexuality and gender identity. Others, like Angie Thomas and Katherine Paterson, met with objections to swearing (in Thomas’ case, likely a cover for objections to political content). R.L. Stine faced accusations of his books’ promoting the occult. All the authors are positioned as important, powerful voices attacked by conservative censors, and the title may leave readers with the belief that any and all objections are equally wrong. Not taken into account are the subjects of librarians’ weeding collections of titles that may contain offensive stereotypes or booksellers’ deciding whether to stock books criticized for representation seen as harmful. While the text is accessible to middle schoolers, the content may be more interesting for adults in education and the publishing industry, though it disappointingly lacks a fully balanced spectrum of views and sacrifices complexity for a uniform message.

A calm, cohesive take on a hot-button issue. (source notes, selected reading, index) (Nonfiction. 13-adult)

Kirkus Reviews