Liberty Park Middle School in Vestavia is hosting the Scholastic Book Fair this week, which features three books that include sensitive topics like LGBTQ+ relationships, child abuse, bullying, alcoholism, and self-harm.
One book, "Heartstopper," the first in a series featuring two high school boys navigating a new relationship when one is already "out" and the other is not, is advertised for ninth grade on the Scholastic site. At the same time, Liberty Park Middle School is sixth through eighth grade.
1819 News spoke to parents of two students at the school, one in the sixth grade and one in the seventh grade, who asked not to be named for the privacy of their children. One of the students brought the books to their parents' attention after attending the sale.
"There is no acceptable reason for these books to be featured at a middle school book fair. Did our school board approve this? Discussions on these topics at this age should be between kids and their parents. It's really telling what our public schools are focusing on instead of actually teaching our kids what they need to learn to get ahead in life," the father of another child wrote on 1819 News. When asked how it made him feel, he quickly replied, "It's bullshit. Shouldn't be there."
Unlike Florida, Alabama does not have a mechanism for parents to know or be made aware of books their children are exposed to in school settings. Florida passed HB 1467 in 2022. According to a memo from the Florida Department of Education, "House Bill 1467, signed by Governor DeSantis on March 25, 2022, and effective July 1, 2022, requires school districts to be transparent in the selection of instructional materials and library and reading materials. This legislation preserves the rights of parents to make decisions about what materials their children are exposed to in school."
"Rainbow!" Volumes 1 and 2, and Heartstopper, were part of a display featured on the Liberty Park Middle School social media pages in a post promoting the sale.
"Heartstopper," the book intended for 9th grade and above, is described on the Book Fair's website as, "Boy meets boy. Boys become friends. Boys fall in love. A sweet and charming coming-of-age story that explores friendship, love, and coming out."
"Rainbow!" Volume 1 is described as, "Teenager Boo Meadows has pink hair and a very vivid imagination -- she has trouble separating from the real world. In her daydreams, she dances beautifully at balls or fights monsters as a magical girl. In reality, she has a complicated home life, work stress, school stress, and a wicked crush on the girl of her dreams. When a new student, Mimi, arrives at school, Boo starts exploring a side of herself that she never considered before. As she grows closer with Mimi, it may finally be time for Boo to face reality . . . Who is the real Mimi? The one in her dreams? Or the one in real life? Rainbow! is perfect for fans of Heartstopper and Magical Boy, full of heart, adorable illustrations, and a storyline that any teenager can relate to!"
"Rainbow!" Volume 2 has a darker plot. "Teenager Boo Meadows's story continues in this second volume! With pink hair and a very vivid imagination, Boo has trouble separating from the real world. In her daydreams, she dances beautifully at balls or fights monsters as a magical girl. In reality, she has a complicated home life, work stress, school stress, and a wicked crush on the girl of her dreams. After life became too toxic to endure, Boo has moved out of her alcoholic mother's house. Can Boo and Mimi stick together? And is dealing with Mimi's unapproving mother any better than Boo's mom?"
The display is nearly identical to the one on the Scholastic website for middle schools, meaning that almost every Alabama middle school that has hosted a Scholastic Book Fair this semester has likely used the same display. It also means that book fair hosts have no excuse for not knowing what will be available to students.
The company makes the displays available on its website. If you search for a fair by city, you can then select the school and scroll down to images of all the displays at the fair.
In 2023, Scholastic rolled out a policy that would have allowed for books to be in an optional category. Following pressure from LGBTQ+ groups, the company announced it would do away with the policy and reintegrate the books into other sections of the sale.
A call to Liberty Park Middle School was directed to the School Board's office. They did not respond to multiple messages left.
Scholastic also did not reply to a request for comment.
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