Banned Books Week Book Review: George by Alex Gino
Today’s review is for George by Alex Gino. It has been challenged and banned because it features a transgender child. Keep reading to find out about one of my friend’s personal fight to keep this book IN schools.
Publisher: Scholastic, Inc.
Paperback release date: April 25, 2017
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Publisher’s Description:
When people look at George, they think they see a boy. But she knows she’s not a boy. She knows she’s a girl.
George thinks she’ll have to keep this a secret forever. Then her teacher announces that their class play is going to be Charlotte’s Web. George really, really, REALLY wants to play Charlotte. But the teacher says she can’t even try out for the part . . . because she’s a boy.
With the help of her best friend, Kelly, George comes up with a plan. Not just so she can be Charlotte — but so everyone can know who she is, once and for all.
George is a middle-grade book about George, a fourth-grader who was born a boy but knows in her heart that’s she’s a girl. She hasn’t told anyone, not even her best friend. Every day is a struggle. She comforts herself by looking at the models in her secret stash of fashion magazines when she gets home from school.
The fourth-grade school play is Charlotte’s Web. George desperately wants to play Charlotte and decides to audition for the part. She knows she’d be perfect. Unfortunately, her teacher is not open to a “boy” playing a female role.
I first learned about George when my friend Kelly posted on Facebook about how she fought to get her son’s school library to carry it. George was nominated for the William Allen White Children’s Book Award, an annual book award selected by a vote of Kansas schoolchildren from a list prepared by the committee. One of the other moms at the school noticed that one of the books on the poster of the ten nominated books was covered up. She asked the school librarian why and the librarian said it was a book the district was not “promoting as a part of the William Allen White book event” and the students kept asking her about George because she had shown them a slide show presentation of the other nine books and they noticed George was not in it.
When Kelly found out about this from that mom, she read the book and immediately contacted a friend who is not only a children’s author, but a former lawyer to boot! They met with the principal and he said that he agreed with them and that they needed to take it to the next level. So Kelly and her friend met with Dr. Lori Franklin, Library Coordinator for the Olathe (Kansas) school district. She said she chose not to promote the book because it had subject matter not appropriate for 3rd-5th graders. It mentions tampons, dirty magazines and porn. (I read the book with my 3rd-grade daughter, who knows what a tampon is – they are nothing to be ashamed of! And the other stuff will go right over kids’ heads. ) Kelly specially asked her if her decision had anything to do with the fact that the main character was transgender and Dr. Franklin said no, but Kelly could tell she was not sincere.
Next, Kelly and her friend met with Dr. Yeager, the Administrator of Elementary Education for Olathe schools, after first researching the selection process for the William Allen White Children’s Book Award and the NLA’s policy on censorship. Luckily, Dr. Yeager agreed that not allowing this book in the schools sent a clear message that the schools did not want to have discussions about transgender people. He actually said he was embarrassed that this situation happened. He told them that there may have to be some sort of compromise but that he would do everything he could to get the book into the schools. A week later, Kelly’s son’s school had a new poster and three copies of the book! The compromise was that when a child wanted to check out the book, their parent had to give verbal consent.
I’m so proud of Kelly. Her persistence really paid off! And her son got to be the very first child to check George out when his school library got it in stock. I have to say that I was shocked by this whole situation. Usually, the parents are the ones who want a book banned and the librarians who fight against it.
Like I said, I read this book with my eight-year-old daughter and while I don’t think she totally got the concept of what it means to be transgender, she does have at least some knowledge now. It was a good starting point for us to discuss it. She did think it was quite unfair that George couldn’t audition to play Charlotte.
It’s a quick read for an adult so if you’re unsure if this book is right for you and your child, it won’t take long to read it yourself first. Once you do, I think you’ll agree that it’s an important book that will lead to empathy and understanding. I highly recommend George for kids of all ages.
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