Okay . . . So this is fun!

I just had to do another post because I stumbled across an interesting article about a very determined group of Wisconsin folk. Here's how it opens:

"Nothing brings back the nostalgic feeling of Nazi Germany quite like a good old fashioned book burning, and thanks to a very vocal group in Wisconsin, a "controversial" young adult novel may be headed toward a bonfire."

The book, titled BABY BE-BOP, is a YA book about a teenager struggling with his homosexuality and is beaten up by a homophobic gang (Amazon description says its a gang of gay teens-- not sure which is true?).

The Christian Civil Liberties Group fought to have the book removed from the library's shelves and then wanted to hold a public book burning-- at this point in reading the article, I was totally thinking of the the movie FOOTLOOSE (Dang I love that movie!) and how the members of the church burn the bad books outside of the library.

Has anyone actually witnessed a book burning? I haven't.

Anyway, The West Bend Parent's For Free Speech apparently won over the pyromaniac dudes by collecting more signatures. Now the Christian Civil Liberties Group is suing the library for $120,000.

Why you ask?

"The plaintiffs, all of whom are elderly, claim their mental and emotional well-being was damaged by this book at the library," and that it contains obscene language that could "put one's life in possible jeopardy, adults and children alike."

I have not read this book (Yet) but regardless, I doubt my life would be in danger from simply looking at the cover, but hey if I get $120K AND I get to have a public bonfire with enough paper to roast an entire bag marshmallows that sounds FREAKIN' AWESOME!

And maybe after the marshmallows we'll all bust out in choreography, like Kevin Bacon and that girl I can't remember (And I'll totally be really good at dancing).

Back to the article.

Okay, seriously how disturbing is this? And like I said, I haven't read the book . . . but regardless of the storyline or where the plot is going, for a teen who's just discovering his/her sexuality and maybe is feeling a little confused/different than "the peers," wouldn't getting inside the head of a character toying with the same thoughts be a safe and private way of getting up the nerve to talk openly about these feelings?

Anyone got an opinion? All sides welcome! Bring on the conservatives!

If you've read the book, please give us a little insight into the major conflict and a sense of character growth. I'd LOVE to hear that.