Last year, Americans found subversive toilet humor to be more offensive than bondage and eroticism, as indicated by a list of the most challenged books in U.S. libraries, where complaints about “Captain Underpants” surpassed those for “Fifty Shades of Grey.”
According to the American Library Association (ALA), Dav Pilkey’s “Captain Underpants” series, which features characters such as Professor Poopypants and Wedgie Woman, topped its 2012 list of books that Americans requested to be banned from libraries due to perceived inappropriate content.
Since 2002, the “Captain Underpants” series of 10 books has made the annual list three times but had never reached the No.1 position until now, as noted by the ALA.
The best-selling sadomasochistic story “Fifty Shades of Grey,” written by British author E.L. James, first appeared on the list in the fourth spot after the erotic trilogy sold 70 million copies worldwide over the last two years.
The ALA reported that its office for intellectual freedom received 464 reports in 2012 concerning attempts to eliminate books from public and school libraries or school curricula. This represents an increase from the 326 such attempts documented in 2011.
The ALA characterizes these “challenges” as formal written requests made to a library or school to restrict or remove a book or other material.
Among other titles on the list are “And Tango Makes Three,” a children’s story about two male penguins who raise an egg together, and Khaled Hosseini’s best-selling novel set in Afghanistan, “The Kite Runner.”
The ALA’s top 10 list of the most-challenged books in 2012 includes:
1) “Captain Underpants,” (series) by Dav Pilkey
2) “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian,” by Sherman Alexie
3) “Thirteen Reasons Why,” by Jay Asher
4) “Fifty Shades of Grey,” by E.L. James
5) “And Tango Makes Three,” by Peter Parnell and Justin Richardson
6) “The Kite Runner,” by Khaled Hosseini
7) “Looking for Alaska,” by John Green
8) “Scary Stories” (series), by Alvin Schwartz
9) “The Glass Castle,” by Jeanette Walls
10) “Beloved,” by Toni Morrison
