How sad that a school district would ban a book as wonderful as "The Watsons Go to Birmingham — 1963." The author, Christopher Paul Curtis (not Davis, as the article on March 22 stated), has written a very poignant book about what racism and violence do to families and people. I am a 12-year-old boy, and my mother is a fourth-grade teacher. We have enjoyed reading Curtis' book aloud. It was enjoyable, well-written and has given us topics for great discussions.

Parents complained that this book was too violent, yet it received an award, The Coretta Scott King Award, for nonviolent social change. Parents complained that a boy was not punished for misbehaving, yet the "violent" church bombing (a real incident) was only included in the story because the boy was being disciplined. We do not use the same language used in the book but know many people who do.

Although we don't condone the use of the Lord's name in general conversation, we do not feel that it is a reason to ban an otherwise terrific and insightful book. Did the parents and district officials who voted to ban the book really read it all the way through? We applaud the teacher who chose to share this book with students and are so glad that she opted to donate the books to schools that can and should use them. We would strongly encourage all parents and children 10 and older to share this book.

Mark and Ann Melville

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North Salt Lake

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