Offers no easy answers but plenty of material to begin a discussion.
A well-organized, balanced, and up-to-date introduction to a complex topic.
Limiting her book’s scope to the U.S., Mooney explains what is not protected by “the right to free speech” (for example, sedition and incitement to violence). She discusses obscenity, defamation, and symbolic speech, reminding readers that private entities may restrict speech. A chapter on book bans features cases where increasingly organized conservative censors, targeting content about race, gender expression, and sexual orientation, frame their actions as worries over children’s innocence. She also cites liberal concerns over insensitive content in some classics. A chapter on classroom controversies describes efforts to limit discussions of divisive issues in federally funded institutions, raises questions about what “age-appropriate” means, and touches on the clash between historical complexity and these laws’ vagueness. The following chapter, “Censoring Online Speech, Misinformation, and Disinformation,” delves into the challenges of moderating content in an online environment, including how difficult it can be to determine what information is false, as attested to by changing expert opinions on the Covid-19 lab-leak theory. The final chapter considers the question of “cancel culture,” framed by some as accountability and by others as censorship; Mooney explores its potential encouragement of self-censorship and related topics. Given the work’s brevity, some important details and context are omitted, but this is an accessible overview, enhanced by photographs and useful text boxes.
Offers no easy answers but plenty of material to begin a discussion. (picture credits, source notes, organizations and websites, further research, index) (Nonfiction. 12-18)Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2024
ISBN: 9781678207267
Page Count: 64
Publisher: ReferencePoint Press
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
Small but mighty necessary reading.
A miniature manifesto for radical queer acceptance that weaves together the personal and political.
Eli, a cis gay white Jewish man, uses his own identities and experiences to frame and acknowledge his perspective. In the prologue, Eli compares the global Jewish community to the global queer community, noting, “We don’t always get it right, but the importance of showing up for other Jews has been carved into the DNA of what it means to be Jewish. It is my dream that queer people develop the same ideology—what I like to call a Global Queer Conscience.” He details his own isolating experiences as a queer adolescent in an Orthodox Jewish community and reflects on how he and so many others would have benefitted from a robust and supportive queer community. The rest of the book outlines 10 principles based on the belief that an expectation of mutual care and concern across various other dimensions of identity can be integrated into queer community values. Eli’s prose is clear, straightforward, and powerful. While he makes some choices that may be divisive—for example, using the initialism LGBTQIAA+ which includes “ally”—he always makes clear those are his personal choices and that the language is ever evolving.
Small but mighty necessary reading. (resources) (Nonfiction. 14-18)Pub Date: June 2, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-09368-9
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: March 28, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2020
Brief yet inspirational, this story will galvanize youth to use their voices for change.
Testa’s connection to and respect for nature compelled her to begin championing animal causes at the age of 10, and this desire to have an impact later propelled her to dedicate her life to fighting plastic pollution. Starting with the history of plastic and how it’s produced, Testa acknowledges the benefits of plastics for humanity but also the many ways it harms our planet. Instead of relying on recycling—which is both insufficient and ineffective—she urges readers to follow two additional R’s: “refuse” and “raise awareness.” Readers are encouraged to do their part, starting with small things like refusing to use plastic straws and water bottles and eventually working up to using their voices to influence business and policy change. In the process, she highlights other youth advocates working toward the same cause. Short chapters include personal examples, such as observations of plastic pollution in Mauritius, her maternal grandparents’ birthplace. Testa makes her case not only against plastic pollution, but also for the work she’s done, resulting in something of a college-admissions–essay tone. Nevertheless, the first-person accounts paired with science will have an impact on readers. Unfortunately, no sources are cited and the lack of backmatter is a missed opportunity.
Brief yet inspirational, this story will galvanize youth to use their voices for change. (Nonfiction. 12-18)Pub Date: Oct. 13, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-22333-8
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2020
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