Captain Underpants Versus the Invisible Man
Continuing my fine tradition of being a day late and a dollar short, let’s talk about banned books week. I was struck, during this past incarnation of that week, by challenges two rather different books: The Invisible Man and Captain Underpants. It’s kind of hard to say which is sillier, all things considered. Obviously, trying to ban a classic of American literature is the more egregious offense (to the point where the school board that did it was quickly embarrassed into reversing themselves), but the Captain Underpants thing is pretty comical, you have to admit.
Granted, while the stats on the various Captain Underpants books show that it is challenged a lot, it is difficult to say how many school boards and so on actually go through with banning it. I only wish, though, that the people who challenge it needed to explain, in a public forum, exactly which bits require such drastic action, rather than just writing an incoherent letter or two, because that way we’d get some entertainment out of it. It would be even better to see that for Fifty Shades of Grey, which may not be challenged as often as the Underpants series, but may represent an even more ridiculous act, as the folks trying to ban it are attempting to stop adults from taking a gander.