An illustrated children’s book about siblings reading books together was flagged as potentially “sexually explicit” in an Alabama public library system because the author’s last name is “Gay.”
“Read Me a Story, Stella” by author Marie-Louise Gay was included on a list of potentially “sexually explicit” books in the Huntsville-Madison County Public Library system above the writer’s last name, AL.com reported .
The book would have been removed from the children’s section of the library system, but staff caught the error before it was removed from the shelves.
HCPL CEO Cindy Hewitt told the media outlet that the book was mistakenly placed on the list of 233 titles due to the keyword “gay.”
“Obviously, we’re not going to touch that book for any reason,” Hewitt said.
He said he asked 10 branch managers to use keywords such as “sexuality, gender, sex and dating” when exploring potential bookmarks, but noted there was a lack of communication and confusion about the process.
Shown is the book “Read Me a Story, Stella” by Marie-Louise Gay.House Of Anansi Press
The effort to review the books and their placement in the library was preparation for “unprecedented” book challenges, he said.
Gay’s publicist, Kirsten Brassard of Groundwood Books, told AL.com that her client’s book has never been “mistakenly censored.”
“While it is obviously ridiculous that our picture book appears on your list of censored books simply because the author’s last name is Gay, the ridiculousness of that fact should not detract from the seriousness of the situation,” Brassard said in a statement.
Gay’s publicist told AL.com that his client’s book has never been “mistakenly censored.” Marie-Louise Gay
The book was first published in 2013.
The main character, Stella, introduces her little brother Sam to reading and also tells the story of the couple who built a doghouse together, according to an online synopsis of the book.
The list that included that book and 232 others has faced internal and public criticism because critics say it was aimed at the LGBTQ community, which Hewitt denied, AL.com reported.
The process stopped when librarians moved some books to the adult section, while others have not been reclassified.
“We understand and appreciate our community and the needs of our collection to reflect our community,” Hewitt told the outlet. “We never delete any books. “We were just looking at it as a whole.”
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