15 of 16 books adressed by committees have been returned in some fashion to school shelves
By Delayna Earley
The Island News
For the first time, a Book Review Committee has voted to remove a book from the shelves completely in the Beaufort County School District.
During the second Beaufort County School District Book Review Committee meeting on Thursday, Jan. 19, Committee No. 10 voted to remove the first book, It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover.
The book is on a list of 97 books that were removed from the school district’s library shelves in October so that they could be reviewed.
Four committee members voted to remove It Ends With Us entirely, and one voted to return it to grades 9-12 only.
Seven other books were deemed appropriate for grades 9-12 and one book was voted as appropriate for grades 6-12.
One committee voted to return their book to circulation with no restrictions.
Committees need a majority vote to decide on a book, and each committee is supposed to comprise seven people, although according to Candace Bruder, BCSD spokesperson, an absence on the day the committee meets does not change the process.
Committee members were expected to read the book that they reviewed and were given a chance to discuss with other members of their committee before voting.
The results of Thursday’s votes are:
Committee No. 7: Milk and Honey by Rupi Kaur – returned to grades 9-12 only.
Committee No. 8: The Freedom Writers Diary by Erin Gruwell – returned to grades 9-12 only.
Committee No. 9: Looking for Alaska by John Green – returned to grades 9-12 only.
Committee No. 10: It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover – removed from circulation.
Committee No. 11: Impulse by Ellen Hopkins – returned to grades 9-12 only.
Committee No. 12: Glass by Ellen Hopkins – returned to grades 9-12 only.
Committee No. 13: Go Ask Alice by Anonymous – returned to grades 9-12 only.
Committee No. 14: Crank by Ellen Hopkins – returned to grades 9-12 only.
Committee No. 15: Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher – returned to circulation.
Committee No. 16: The Poet X by Elizabeth Aceveda – returned to grades 9-12 only.
“I thought the process was well organized,” said Laura Eggers, of Beaufort, who participated on one of the committees on Thursday night, “Everyone was very respectful.”
Delayna Earley lives in Beaufort with her husband, two children and Jack Russell. She spent six years as a videographer and photographer for The Island Packet and The Beaufort Gazette before leaving the Lowcountry in 2018. After freelancing in Myrtle Beach and Virginia, she joined The Island News when she moved back to Beaufort in 2022. She can be reached at delayna.theislandnews@gmail.com.
