Off-topic: Scrotum is not a four-letter word

As predictably as spring follows winter, the book censors are all atwitter again. This time they are aghast over the use of the word "scrotum" in a children's book called "The Higher Power of Lucky," winner of an award so prestigious that the New York Times this morning likens it to being endorsed by Oprah.

From the Times story:

The word "scrotum" does not often appear in polite conversation. Or children's literature, for that matter.

Yet there it is on the first page of "The Higher Power of Lucky," by Susan Patron, this year's winner of the Newbery Medal, the most prestigious award in children's literature. The book's heroine, a scrappy 10-year-old orphan named Lucky Trimble, hears the word through a hole in a wall when another character says he saw a rattlesnake bite his dog, Roy, on the scrotum.

"Scrotum sounded to Lucky like something green that comes up when you have the flu and cough too much," the book continues. "It sounded medical and secret, but also important."

The book has already been banned in some places and is the topic of heated debate among educators and librarians.

"I don't want to start an issue about censorship," says one librarian firmly ensconced in an issue about censorship. "But you won't find men's genitalia in quality literature. ... At least not for children."

You won't find any in "The Higher Power of Lucky," either; it's just a word.

You can read some of the ongoing commentary at Librarian.net, a blog written by Jessamyn West. The author's response can be read here and supportive comments from others here.

This queasiness/prudishness over basic biology never ceases to amaze.

Naturally enough, my 5-year-old boys know the word penis, as well the part of the body to which it applies. So does their 5-year-old sister, who also comes equipped with the vocabulary to describe her own equipment. (Told we were expecting deep snow the other day, Grant replied, "Will it come up to my penis?" He could have said knees or waist; it's all the same to a 5-year-old.)

By the time they're 10, I am quite certain the three of them will find the word scrotum as amusing as does the protagonist in "The Higher Power of Lucky."

I just hope they'll be able to find the book on the shelves of their school and community libraries. Chances are they will, since we live in ever-so-enlightened Massachusetts.

I fear for the children of those of you not so fortunate.

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