Of scrotums and higher powers....

Column originally published March 1, 2007

Let parents decide what kids read

By Kelvin Wade

Scrotum. That's the supposedly offensive word that has had some parents and librarians upset and seeking to ban 2007 Newbery Medal award winning children's book, "The Higher Power of Lucky" by Susan Patron.

The book has been banned in several states. In the book, 10-year-old Lucky overhears a character describe how his dog was bitten on the scrotum by a rattlesnake.

The author has explained in interviews that the snake-biting tale is based on a real incident that happened to a friend's dog. She goes on to say that the protagonist overhearing that word fits with one of the theme of the book, which is Lucky preparing to be a grown up.

The passage continues: "Scrotum sounded to Lucky like something green that comes up when you have the flu and cough too much. It sounded medical and secret, but also important."

The American Heritage Dictionary defines scrotum as "the external sac of skin enclosing the testes in most mammals." There's nothing perverted or x-rated about it. Why stigmatize an inoffensive descriptive word that merely describes a body part like toe, finger, buttocks or elbow?

I'd understand the outrage if Patron had used coarse street slang in the book to describe the organ. She did not.

Put into proper context, little Lucky eavesdrops on an AA meeting and overhears the scrotum story as part of a character's rock-bottom moment. It's significant because Lucky tries throughout the book to decipher the 12 steps and apply them to her own life.

I think the same people upset about the use of the word scrotum would be even more outraged by the nontraditional families in the story. And no, I don't mean gay.

It's been some years now but there was a local controversy in the high schools here when some parents objected to the Isabel Allende novel "The House of the Spirits" and Mark Mathabane's autobiography, "Kaffir Boy" because of the books' adult subject matter. After much back and forth, the Fairfield-Suisun district decided to make those books optional reading.

It should be noted that both the aforementioned novels are critically acclaimed. And as mentioned, "The Higher Power of Lucky" has earned the Newbery Medal which is awarded by the American Library Association for the most distinguished American children's book published the previous year. The high praise and awards should alert parents that these are serious works, not written merely to shock or titillate.

Of course it's up to parents to decide what they think is appropriate for their children. What's right for my 10-year-old may not be suitable for your's.

But the problem comes when Parent A decides that Parent B's child can't read a book with the word "scrotum" in it. The nervous parents who refer to scrotums with babyish euphemisms and the skittish Big Brother librarians shouldn't hold veto power over what the majority wants to read.

It's too bad the fuss over one word overshadows a well written tale of a little girl trying to gain some control over her life.