NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — It's a post that's taken off on social media, as a local author and bookstore owner says two of her books have been banned in a Florida school system.
This controversy makes news just as we're getting a better idea of bills state lawmakers will pitch in the upcoming legislative session.
One of them would add to a law concerning books in our schools' libraries and classrooms.
At Parnassus Books in Nashville, owner and author Ann Patchett wasted no time posting to social media, saying two of her books had just been removed from the Orange County School system in Florida.
Those books were "Bel Canto" and "The Patron Saint of Liars."
In Tennessee, one bill already filed for this year's legislative session would strengthen a law requiring schools to remove books deemed inappropriate for a student's age or maturity level, specifically clarifying that a parent has a right to sue a school board to get them to act under the law.
Patchett says she worries laws like the Age Appropriate Materials Act help usher books out of school classrooms and libraries, based on fragments of what the book is about.
"Have you read the entire book or did you see something on the internet where someone pulls out three sentences and posts them and you say, 'That can't be right!'?" Patchett said.
But proponents say in making decisions under the law, the entire book is considered.
"You actually have to consider each work as a whole each time you're wondering if it's age-appropriate or not," Rep. Gino Bulso (R-Brentwood) said.
The bill clarifying a parent's ability to sue is one of several bills filed before the legislative session begins.
The Orange County School district in Florida has removed nearly 700 books from classrooms in accordance with a law that prohibits "sexual conduct" in books.
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-Rebecca Schleicher
