A New York Times article reported last week on the uproar generated over the mention of the word "scrotum" in a Newbery Medal-winning new children's book, The Higher Power of Lucky. Apparently many librarians are appalled at the anatomically-correct mention of male genitalia, used in this case to locate a snake bite on a dog's body. I mean really, what parent wants their child reading challenging, rich literature when it contains a horrific word like scrotum?
Some school librarians have vowed to ban the "Howard Stern-style shock treatment" from their schools. My reaction is predictably eye-rollingly dismissive, as is Susie Bright's anatomy of the literary sex panic.
My favorite argument against all this bruhaha is the fact that it makes librarians look bad. Thank God there are some cool ones out there to balance out the crazies in this scrotal tizzy.
(Is it offensive to stereotype librarians? Or just kinda hot?)
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