'The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time' removed from Lake Fenton Mid

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'The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time' removed from Lake Fenton

Middle School's summer reading list

Published: Wednesday, July 21, 2010, 5:57 PM

Updated: Wednesday, July 21, 2010, 10:40 PM

LAKE FENTON, Michigan — Laetz is curious as to just how a book with foul

language made it into her seventh-grade son's summer reading list.

Now, with the Fenton Township mother and others complaining about the book, Lake

Fenton Middle School has taken Mark Haddon's " The Curious Incident of the Dog in

the Night-Time " off the list.

A Chicago-based group that recommends books for teens thinks the district has

gone too far.

" I support parents making that choice for their child, but their child only, "

said Kim Patton, president of the Young Adult Library Services Association.

Laetz bought " Curious Incident " because her 12-year-old son selected it because

it was about a dog

That was one " big mistake, " she said.

Her son started reading it but felt uncomfortable when he discovered it had foul

language, including the " F-word. "

The book, which is about an autistic child who investigates the death of a

neighborhood dog, is an award-winning New York Times bestseller.

Laetz hasn't read the book but she doesn't believe its a good literary book

because of its language or its usage of God's name.

" What's frightening is these are random pages. Any page you opened, you'd find

foul language, " she said.

She complained to the school July 1 in an e-mail and her husband, Ken, spoke to

the board of education at its meeting Monday night.

After receiving complaints, Lake Fenton Middle School Principal Dan Ferguson

sent out a phone message to parents urging " close parent monitoring " of the

novel.

Polidan of Linden, who has a granddaughter in the seventh-grade at Lake

Fenton Middle School, said she started passing out packets to parents and

neighbors after Laetz showed her the book.

Polidan said she was appalled by the language as she thumbed through the book.

" I don't think any kid should be reading this book. The profanity, the whole

story, isn't really that good, " Polidan said.

Polidan said she's happy the book was taken off the list, but won't be satisfied

until she knows how the book got on the list in the first place.

" This was pretty incompetent on somebody's part, " she said. " They couldn't have

read this and put it on the list. It's a bad book. "

Lake Fenton Superintendent Wayne said he does not know if the teachers

had read the book before putting it on the list but thinks the book came from

other reading lists.

, who took over as the district's superintendent earlier this month, said

he doesn't know if the book has been read in other classes in the school

district.

said he is checking in to see if the book is available in the district's

other school libraries and will make sure in the future that books are assigned

at an appropriate reading level.

He said he wouldn't make a decision on keeping the book at school libraries

before determining if it's already there.

" I don't disagree with the parents. I am right in line with them. It is

inappropriate, " said.

The YASLA's Patton said parents should know what their kids are reading and

would have rather seen the book stay on the reading list.

Taking the book off the list, Patton said, eliminates an opportunity for others

to learn a lesson from reading the book, which is a " great story on its own. "

The lead character, she said, overcomes obstacles from his disease to go out

into society, and solve the murder of the dog, as well as put together pieces of

his parents' relationship.

In 2004, YALSA selected " The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time " as

one of the top 10 best books for young adults and for an Award, which is

given to books written for adults that have special appeal to young adults.

Patton said the believes the book is suitable for a lot of 12-year-olds, but not

all.

Many kids, she said, like to read up in age level, about kids who are older than

they are.

" Yes there's some foul language in it. It's nothing that teens don't already

know and use already, " Patton said.