No Shelf Control!

A Book Club for Grades 4-6

Calling all readers ages 9-12: No Shelf Control is the place for you! Pick up a copy of "Property of the Rebel Librarian" and join us tonight for a discussion of middle school readers and censorship.

When June Harper's parents discover she's reading a book called "The Making of a Witch," they become deeply concerned that her middle school librarian has stocked the shelves with material not appropriate for kids that age. Enough of the community and school administration agree and remove a wide range of authors and subjects from the collection, implementing a ban on even bringing certain books into school. June realizes she's not alone in opposing this and works with other avid tweenage readers to find ways to secretly pass around and read books that they've loved and want to read. When the identity of the "rebel librarian" is uncovered, what will be the consequences? How should parents, teachers, and librarians balance access to reading material with their desire to shield their students and children from certain language, topics, and ideas until they're older?

You can borrow a copy of "Property of the Rebel Librarian" by Allison Varnes, along with a specially prepared reading guide for our group, from the Connie Morella Library; just ask at either the Circulation Desk or Information Desk for the book for the March meeting of No Shelf Control. The book is also available as an e-book through the library’s free service at mcplmd.overdrive.com or the Libby app. (It is not currently available as an e-audiobook or through Hoopla). If you use an electronic version, please contact librarian Jeff Coster (Jeffrey.Coster@montgomerycountymd.gov) to request a copy of the reading guide. He can also be contacted with any questions about the program and participant eligibility.

If you are in grades 4, 5 or 6 and love to read and have fun talking about books and characters, No Shelf Control is the place for you! Over the course of the school year, we’ll read books from a wide range of genres—realistic fiction, mystery, humor, science fiction, fantasy, adventure—featuring characters your age and themes such as friendship, family, overcoming adversity, confronting challenges, sorting through conflicting values, and navigating life, school, sports and other extracurricular activities, other people’s expectations, and their expanding knowledge of themselves and the world around them. We often use new books published within the last 2-3 years and acclaimed titles from such award programs as the Black-Eyed Susan. Each session’s interactive discussions and hands-on activities will relate to the major topics and themes of the book in a fun and engaging way. Each month, you can borrow a copy of the assigned book (with a specially prepared reading guide just for our group) from the Connie Morella Library. You can also access many of the titles as e-books or e-audiobooks through the library’s free app, Hoopla and Libby. 

Library Program Attendance (both virtual and in the branch) is limited to participants within the suggested age range of the program. Children attending an MCPL program under the age of 8 must be accompanied by an adult. Adults attending a program intended for children must have an accompanying child.

Don't have a card right now? Find out how to Get a Library Card.

Have questions about this program? Contact the branch at 240-777-0970, or librarian Jeff Coster at jeffrey.coster@montgomerycountymd.gov.

Accommodation Requests

People who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing should request English-language captioning or sign-language interpretation at least five days before the library-sponsored program they plan to attend. Contact the Assistant Facilities and Accessibility Program Manager at 240-777-0002 with all other accommodation requests.

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