Celebrate Banned Books Week September 25 – October 2
The American Library Association observes Banned Books Week September 25 – October 2 to celebrate the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment. The top ten challenged books in 2009 are listed below followed by the reasons they were challenged. VOYA reviews fo the young adult challenged books are also included. VOYA supports teens' freedom to read!
ttyl (Internet Girls series) by Lauren Myracle (Amulet/Abrams, 2004/VOYA June 2004).
Nudity, sexually explicit, offensive language, unsuited to age group, drugs.
Myracle, Lauren. ttyl. Amulet Books/Harry N. Abrams, 2004. 224p. $15.95. 0-8109-4821-4. 3Q 4P M J
Three friends in tenth grade, Angela, Maddie, and Zoe, use instant messaging (IM) to discuss the events and issues in their lives. This novel is written entirely in the IM format and gives the reader a voyeuristic view of high school life in Atlanta. In addition to the usual chatter about outfits, jobs, and homework, the girls face problems with friends and with a lecherous teacher, and they discuss spirituality and family issues. Each girl has a distinctive personality: Zoe is reserved and interested in church, Maddie is outgoing and searches for new experiences and friends, and Angela lies somewhere between them.
Myracle captures the banter and shorthand style of instant messaging, and she successfully conveys personalities and settings through the dialogue, but the format does not allow a complex plot to develop. Instead it is an episodic slice-of-life story. Younger teens will enjoy the novelty of its style, and the names of current television shows, movies, and restaurants scattered throughout the book will make it easy for them to identify with Angela, Maddie, and Zoe. But just like the latest technology, this book will be discarded when the next new thing comes along. Leisure readers should enjoy it before it becomes outdated.-Jenny Ingram.
In ttyl Myracle shows the hardships of three girls' high school lives. As a younger student, I cannot relate to the problems that Angela, Zoe, and Maddie have to endure, and I think that girls in grades eight through eleven or twelve will like this book more. Girls in those grades would be able to more easily connect with Angela, Zoe, or Maddie in at least one aspect of their lives. 3P 3Q-Rebecca Mor...
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