The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver | Banned Book Project
The Bean Trees (1988) Synopsis:
Clear-eyed and spirited, Taylor Greer grew up poor in rural Kentucky with the goals of avoiding pregnancy and getting away. But when she heads west with high hopes and a barely functional car, she meets the human condition head-on. By the time Taylor arrives in Tucson, Arizona, she has acquired a completely unexpected child, a three-year-old American Indian girl named Turtle. She must somehow come to terms with both motherhood and the necessity for putting down roots. Hers is a story about love and friendship, abandonment and belonging, and discovering surprising resources in apparently empty places.
Locations Challenged or Banned:
Overland Park, Kansas: 2004 – Parents at the Blue Valley School System fought to remove 14 titles from five high school libraries and reading lists. 600 concerned citizens signed an online petition stating that the offending books didn’t comply with the school board’s policy that all materials be “absence of vulgar language, sexual explicitness or violent imagery that is gratuitously employed.” The challenged list of books included, All the Pretty Horses, Animal Dreams, The Awakening, The Bean Trees, Beloved, Black Boy, FallenAngels, Hot Zone, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Lords of Discipline, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Song of Solomon, Stotan, This Boy’s Life.
Valdosta, Georgia: 2005 – A concerned parent complained about adult situations and vulgar language to her child’s junior high school English teacher at Lowndes High School. The unidentified parent then filed a complaint with the school administration, rallying her friends and congregation at the Forrest Park Church of Christ. The Lowndes County School System Superintendent, Steve Smith, removed the book from the school reading list. Going further, Smith stated that the book violated the Lowndes School District’s code of conduct, and any student caught with the book on campus would be suspended.
North Richland Hill, Texas: 2008 – Birdsvill High School in the Irving Independent School District restricted access to the book from 9th grade to 11th grade for scenes of nudity, sexual content, and offensive to religious sensitivities.
Saugus, California: 2009 – Parents challenged the book as part of the William S. Hart Union High School District honors English required summer reading due to sexual scenes and vulgar language. Students were given the option to substitute the book.
Reasons for the Ban or Challenge:
Obscenity, poronagraphy, sexual content.
References:
American Civil Liberties Union of Texas (2009). “Free People Read Freely: The 13th Annual Report on Challenged and Banned Books in Texas Public Schools.” https://www.aclutx.org/sites/default/files/field_documents/bb2k9.pdf
Doyle, Robert, P. Books Banned or Challenged in 2009-2010. https://www.ila.org/initiatives/banned-books-week/books-challenged-or-banned-in-2009-2010
Education Reporter, March 2003, p. 3. “Kansas Parents Organize to Improve High School Reading Lists.” https://www.phyllisschlafly.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/2005_3-March-EdReporter.pdf
Marshall LIbraries. Banned Books – 2010. The Bean Trees. https://www.marshall.edu/library/bannedbooks/bean-trees/
Pope, Jessica. “Book raises ire of parent; ‘The Bean Trees’ off LHS required reading list.” Valdosta Times Daily, December 6, 2005. https://www.valdostadailytimes.com/news/local_news/book-raises-ire-of-parent-the-bean-trees-off-lhs-required-reading-list/article_b0a2fe78-9d88-5b67-aea9-fd781f7af663.html
