English teacher Jordan Wells has always incorporated banned books in her classes, including works such as John Steinbeck’s “Of Mice and Men,” William Golding’s “Lord of the Flies” and J. D. Salinger’s “Catcher in the Rye.” Wells, however, doesn’t choose these works specifically because they are banned. Instead, she intends for the books’ stories to raise awareness around differing perspectives and reflect the diversity of her students, building their abilities to connect with groups that they wouldn’t usually engage with. “Reading is an amazing gateway to understanding other people,” Wells said. “It’s a fuel for empathy. There needs to be space for everybody in what we do — in what we read. But the impact beyond seeing a diversity of authors (is) a diversity of topics. I’ve seen students being able to talk about incredibly difficult things, from sexual abuse to suicide to abusive relationships, because we were able to tackle it in a safe, fictional world.”
Common topics that Wells sees in banned books include profanity, violence and sexuality. In recent years, she has also noticed the lived experiences of marginalized people being challenged. “Essentially, (perspectives of) anyone who is not white, anyone who is not straight, are the books that are most under fire right now,” she said.
In her teaching career, Wells has yet to face issues regarding banned books, a dynamic she attributes to the Palo Alto community’s acceptance of difference. “I feel very lucky to be teaching where I’m teaching because I run into fewer administrative challenges than I saw as a teenager growing up,” she said. “I grew up in a small town, so my parents (who were) teachers ran into more friction than I do.”
Including banned books in the curriculum, however, can make it hard to engage every student in discussions, as some students are less interested in these topics. Despite such challenges, Wells fosters a classroom atmosphere that promotes meaningful, honest conversations and emphasizes other resources such as libraries that celebrate authors and characters of all backgrounds.
According to Wells, books are often banned by people who cannot see the impacts of the themes and topics discussed in the story. “Although the books take on challenging or diverse topics, that’s not necessarily scary,” she said. “A book is a safe way to take on a hard subject or to learn about a world different (from) yours.”
—Written by Charlotte Qian
Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird” is banned due to racist and offensive language and plot centered around alleged rape.
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