Week 7 - Prompt: Controversial Books/Authors

I have worked at my library for a little over a year and half and we haven’t had too much trouble with controversial books in that time. The one notable exception is the book Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe. Gender Queer is a graphic memoir released in 2019. By 2021 it was the most banned book of the year, especially in school libraries. It recounts the author’s journey of self-discovery of their gender identity as non-binary and their sexuality.

We had a patron challenge our having this book in our collection. I do not know what their specific issue with it was, as we have many other books in the YA section with LGBTQIA+ themes but said patron has not challenged any of those. Maybe because the word Queer was in the title it more readily drew their attention. After the patron filled out a formal complaint our director decided to move Gender Queer from the YA graphic novels section to the adult non-fiction section. He notified the patron of the change, and we haven’t heard from them since. We have also since moved all the graphic novels out of the YA section and over to a wall by the adult fiction section.

While this was a successful compromise that seemed to appease the patron, I worry that by hiding it back in the adult non-fiction section we’ve made it more difficult to find for those who might truly benefit from it. After all, hiding something doesn’t make it stop existing. Teens and young adults are going to continue to struggle to come to terms with their gender identity/sexuality. All we’ve done is hide a resource that could potentially make that struggle a little less onerous and a little less lonely.

Mystery Annotation - Death of a Gossip by M.C. Beaton

Author: M.C. Beaton              

Title: Death of a Gossip  

Genre: Mystery 

Publication Date: 1985  

Number of Pages: 205  

Geographical Setting: Lochdubh, Scotland  

Time Period: circa 1985  

Series (If applicable): Hamish Macbeth series book #1 

Plot Summary: Hamish Macbeth is the constable in the small Scottish village of Lochdubh with a reputation for being lazy and gormless. Then a student in a local fly-fishing school is found strangled with a fishing line and everyone in the school is a suspect. Everyone had a motive for wanting the hateful, miserable, nosy, Laday Jane dead. The “big brass” in the form of Chief Detective Inspector Blair and his two sidekicks are brought in to take over the investigation and solve the mystery. Just like the townspeople, Blair underestimates Hamish. Beneath the exterior of a bumbling local constable lies a determined, quick-witted, resourceful detective. Surrounded by a cast of quirky characters, Hamish defies the big brass, conducts his own investigation, and much to everyone’s surprise, especially Blair, he reels in the murder.  

Subject Headings: Mystery – Fiction 

       Scottish – Fiction

       Cozy Mystery – Fiction

       Quirky Characters -- Fiction 

Mystery Appeal: 

Storyline - According to Wyatt & Saricks “A crime and it’s subsequent investigation form the heart of the story line of Mysteries.” (2019) As could be deduced from the title Death of a Gossip definitely centers on crime, specifically murder and the investigation that follows. 

Characterization - As with most Mysteries, “the character of the investigator plays a major role” in the storyline of Death of a Gossip. (Wyatt & Saricks, 2019) The local constable Hamish MacBeth, lazy and bumbling character that he is, is a constant presence throughout the story. 

Frame/Setting - “Frame refers to the details and side subjects, as well as the ancillary learning, that are often integrated into a Mystery.” (Wyatt & Saricks, 2019) The main characters in Death of Gossip are attending a Fly-fishing school in Scotland, run out of a local hotel. As such the reader learns about Fly-fishing right along with the characters. 

3 terms that best describe this book: amusing, quirky, cozy 

Similar Authors and Works (why are they similar?): 

3 Relevant Non-Fiction Works and Authors  

Rick Steves Scotland (2023 Travel Guide) by Rick Steves and Cameron Hewitt                                                        I chose this book because Death of a Gossip takes place in Scotland and as such mentions a lot of Scottish locations. A travel guide for Scotland seemed apropos. Some readers might be interested in learning more about the sights in Scotland. 

 

 

 

The History of Fly-Fishing in Fifty Flies by Ian Whitelaw                                                                                   The main activity in the book is Fly-fishing as the main characters are attending a Fly-fishing school. So, I chose a book about Fly-fishing and flies, because readers might be interested to see what some of the equipment, they’ve read about looks like. 

 

 

Lochs of Scotland: The comprehensive guide to Scotland’s most fabulous inland and sea lochs by Stuart Fisher                                                                                   There are a lot of Lochs mentioned throughout the book so I thought I would include this book about the lochs in Scotland. Some readers may want to learn more about the lochs after reading so much about them. 

 

 

3 Relevant Fiction Works and Authors 

The Quiche of Death by M.C. Beaton (Agatha Raisin #1)    This is the first book in another series written by the same author. They have a similar feel to the Hamish Macbeth series but take place in England. They share the appeal terms of cozy mystery, gentle read genres, and an amusing tone.  

 

 

 

Thursday Murday Club by Richard Osman                       I chose this as a relevant fiction book because it is a mystery that takes place in the U.K. Like Death of a Gossip it has likeable characters, an amusing tone, and I would consider it a cozy mystery, and gentle read.  

 

 

 

Murder in an Irish Village by Carlene O’Connor          I chose this book because it came up on Novelist as a read-a-like. Like Death of a Gossip, it is classified as a cozy mystery and a gentle read. They also both have likeable characters and an amusing tone.  

References:

Wyatt, N., & Saricks, J. G. (2019). The readers' advisory guide to genre fiction (Third). ALA Editions.