Libraries Reject Fifty Shades - Toronto Star's Spotlight

Toronto Star's Spotlight

Extract:
British writer E.L. James’s sex-and-domination Fifty Shades trilogy, originally an online Twilight riff that was picked up by Australian boutique publisher The Writer’s Coffee Shop, and recently acquired by Vintage Books for more than $1 million, now dominates the New York Times bestseller list. continue reading The Toronto Star's Publishing is still a thrill for innovative pioneers, By Greg Quill

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ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Public libraries in several states are pulling the racy romance trilogy "Fifty Shades of Grey" from shelves or deciding not to order the best-seller at all, saying it's too steamy or too poorly written.

Even in the age of e-books and tablets, banning a book from a public library still carries weight because libraries still play such a vital role in providing people access to books.

"When a book is removed from the shelf, folks who can't afford a Nook or a Kindle, the book is no longer available to them," said Deborah Caldwell Stone, the deputy director of the American Library Association's office for intellectual freedom.

"Fifty Shades of Grey," a novel about bondage, wild sex and yes, love, has been called "mommy porn" because of its popularity among middle-aged women. It has become so well-known that "Saturday Night Live" performed a skit about it, joking that a Kindle with "Fifty Shades" uploaded on it was the perfect Mother's Day gift.
Continue reading:

'Fifty Shades' too steamy for some library shelves CTV.ca, May. 10, 2012