Books: challenged, banned, and burned

Despite the recent popularity of adolescent literature amongst readers of all ages and the fact that adolescent literature continues to cover (or uncover) topics like rape, abuse, and addiction for young people, it repeatedly fails to cover menstruation. The reason why? Censorship. While other “sensitive” topics of the past aren't being censored in schools today, menstruation still is in many cases. For instance, one of the most widely read books in middle schools today, Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl, is oftern censored, not for its descriptions of the Holocaust but because of the author's discussion of menstruation. Judy Blume's Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret has been censored for the same discussion, and continues to be censored today. This essay will look at the themes of menstruation and censorship in both of these books as well as menstruation's mention in more recent pieces of adolescent/crossover literature, Megan McCafferty's Sloppy Firsts and Phyllis Reynolds Naylor's Lovingly Alice, and its acceptance by today's readers. It will also discuss the importance of “shedding the shame and secrecy” of menstruation in adolescent literature.

“So if little girls experience their menstrual cycle in 5th grade or 4th grade, will that prohibit conversations from them since they are in the grade lower than sixth grade?” asked state Rep. Ashley Gantt, a Democrat who taught in public schools and noted that girls as young as 10 can begin having periods.
“It would,” McClain responded.

15-year-old Anne looked with amazement at the things she had written about sex and sexuality when she was 13 years old. Most of the references and passages on the subject were omitted from the rewritten version. In her diary, Anne wrote about her period several times, and these passages did not make it into Het Achterhuis either.