Week 4 (Post 3)

In staying with our topic of the week, “Outliers,” I came across a couple of articles about a gay 15 year old teen that was speaking out against the lack of LGBT literature available at his school library and his public library. This teen is Brent, and he attends a high school in Kentucky. He is an avid reader and when he decided to start coming out to his friends about his sexuality, he also decided to find some LGBT literature to help with his openness and this transition. He was sad by the fact that his school library carried no LGBT titles. Not a single one. Then angered by the fact that the librarian said those types of book are “inappropriate for school.” He then turned to his public library and found one. Only one title with a gay protagonist. He knows that living in a small town has definitely had some affect on these findings, but to be called inappropriate was something else. He then went to the local bookstore, where he found more LGBT titles than he imagined existed. He learned that there really is a market out there for LGBT titles you just have to know where to look. He is lucky enough to have the resources provided by his parents to purchase these books for him. He saddened though and now speaking out for those other teens that are Gay or Lesbian and are not able to buy these books, since they are not available at the libraries. He decided to start a blog where he reviews LGBT YA literature and books and has been advocating for more availability of these titles in public libraries.


One article that I read was a NY Times article. This one was well written and presented the situation in a very open and sensible way. They did not quote Brent very much, but they showed how his story is building up an audience around the “blogosphere” online. The second article was an interview with Brent from the School Library Journal, and while this one was informative and gave a closer look at Brent as an individual, it was really lacking the feel of a professional interview. The questions were very repetitive and addressed things that he already answered in previous questions. I also felt that the interviewer was dumbing the questions down for Brent. He is 15 and I think they are not giving him enough credit for being a well read high school student. Overall, both articles gave a good inside look at how one gay teen is making a difference for himself and other LGBT teens whose informational needs are not being met. It appears that with more time and with others getting involved, LGBT materials in public and school libraries will slowly star to find their place among the shelves.

The Associated Press. (2010, June 23). Books with gay themes for young readers
take off. The New York Times. Retrieved from
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2010/06/23/arts/AP-US-FEA-Lifestyles-
Gay-Lit-for-Teens.html?_r=4&hp&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1277327599-
21K2VXCYnaqvj%2FGtzDvurg

Whelan, D.L. (2010, June 25). Gay teen blogger blasts school, public librarians.
The School Library Journal. Retrieved from http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6727991