Read Banned Books

A new cartoon essay in this Sunday's New York Times

A new full-page cartoon essay from me in this Sunday’s New York Times Arts & Leisure section. I’ve also printed up a small self-published ‘zine of this cartoon, and will be giving them out for free at the annual New Jersey Association of School Librarians conference in Atlantic City on December 3rd. If you are attending, please track me down all weekend long in the author’s alley to pick one up, or attend my Cartooning Workshop at 2:30PM.

It is a myth that getting a book banned is somehow beneficial to a writer’s career, particularly children’s authors. Yes, some high-profile cases will lead to a title taking on an air of infamy, and probably sell a lot more copies than it otherwise might, but for most authors a ban manifests itself in less chances for a book to be discovered, less placement in school libraries, fewer opportunities to visit schools and speak to young readers about their work. And, if the majority of books getting challenged are either about people of color or members of the LGBTQIA+ community, then those authors will be the ones who struggle more to maintain an already difficult-to-sustain career path.

The optimist in me hopes that in the long-run, these contemporary moral panic campaigns will become a political dead-end for their perpetrators. I believe the majority of society now has evolved on a great many issues, and that “book bans” alarm a great many more of us than find the concept appealing. However, I do think we have to do all we can to raise awareness that these are the things happening, to call attention to the potential unknown victims of these movements, and to hopefully push back the tide.

Thanks as always for reading along!

Mike