Review committee votes to ban 3rd of 97 books from Beaufort County school libraries
A book review committee voted Thursday night to permanently remove the third of 97 books from Beaufort County schools — “The Haters” by Jesse Andrews — since the evaluation process began in October.
It has been six months since the books were pulled from shelves. Out of the 36 books reviewed so far, committees also banned “Nineteen Minutes” by Jodi Picoult and “It Ends With Us” by Colleen Hoover.
In this latest round, seven committees voted that their books only be allowed in grades 9-12, one committee voted for their book be allowed in grades 6-12, one committee voted to completely return their book to general library circulation, and one voted to bank its book entirely.
The decisions are:
- “The Art of Racing in the Rain” by Garth Stein — returned completely
“Wintergirls” by Laurie Halse Anderson — returned to grades 6-12
- “The Bluest Eye” by Toni Morrison — returned to grades 9-12
“The Female of the Species” by Mindy McGinnis — returned to grades 9-12
“The Upside of Unrequited” by Becky Albertalli — returned to grades 9-12, previously in grades 6-12
“The You I’ve Never Known” by Ellen Hopkins — returned to grades 9-12, previously in grades 6-12
“This One Summer” by Mariko Tamaki — returned to grades 9-12
“Tilt” by Ellen Hopkins — returned to grades 9-12
“Yolk” by Mary H.K. Choi — returned to grades 9-12
“The Haters” by Jesse Andrews — banned
‘The Haters’
“The Haters” is a New York Times bestseller that follows a trio of teenagers trying to become a hit band. Andrews, the author, also wrote the New York Times bestseller “Me and Earl and the Dying Girl,” which was also removed by library shelves but returned to grades 9-12 in February.
The book bills itself as a “groundbreaking young adult novel about music, love, friendship and freedom as three young musicians follow a quest to escape the law long enough to play the amazing show they hope (but also doubt) they have in them.”
While “Me and Earl and the Dying Girl” ranks eighth on the list of most banned books in 2022, “The Haters” doesn’t appear on the list.
A BookLooks.org review flagged “The Haters” for frequent profanity and descriptions of sex. Parent Ivie Szalai used Booklooks.org to create the initial list of nearly 100 books.
This story was originally published March 16, 2023 at 2:37 PM.
