IT STARTED WITH A BOOK BAN

What are the consequences of censorship run amok?

Edwin’s week seems to be off to a typical start, but everything lurches off track when he arrives at school to find the library shelves completely bare. Ms. Paige tries to explain the reasoning behind banning books about space (“They promote anti-gravity ideas”), but Edwin thinks the rationale is silly. He fears that there might be no limit to what is prohibited (triple-fudge sundaes?), and indeed, in town everything green has already disappeared (including traffic lights). Birdsong is banned on Tuesday, the letter S on Wednesday, then Mr. Jericho’s jokes, the number 5, and unicorn books. Banning the sun makes everything gray and everyone miserable. But Edwin has an idea, and his friends jump on board. They stage a demonstration calling for un-banning. Just like that, everyone agrees, colors return, the sun shines, and Edwin can do his favorite thing: “read a book.” The resolution is a tad pat, but kids will revel in the exaggerated examples; an entire page is devoted to posters of things the townspeople wish to ban, from “robot dancing” to roller blading in a dinosaur outfit. An author’s note explains book challenges and argues for their abolition. Cushley’s art blends realism, expressionism, and cartoon stylization, using neon colors to grab readers’ attention and alternating between vignettes and double spreads to effectively underscore the message. 

A parable driven by enjoyable absurdity, with an unmissable point at its heart.