It's Perfectly Normal
 | |
| Author | Robie Harris |
|---|---|
| Illustrator | Michael Emberley |
| Language | English |
| Subject | Human sexuality |
| Publisher | Candlewick Press |
Publication date | 1994 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Pages | 89 |
| ISBN | 978-1-56402-159-5 |
| Followed by | It's so Amazing |
It's Perfectly Normal: Changing Bodies, Growing Up, Sex, and Sexual Health is a children's book about going through puberty. It is written by Robie Harris and illustrated by Michael Emberley. Harris was prompted to write it when an editor asked her to write a children's book about HIV/AIDS, and she felt the subject needed to be treated more generally.[1] It was first published in 1994, and has since been translated into 30 languages.[2]
The book is considered highly controversial and is #12 on the American Library Association's Most Challenged Books of 2000-2009 list.[3] In 2007, a woman in Lewiston, Maine made national news when she checked the local libraries' copies out and refused to return them, claiming the book was 'pornographic'.[4]
The book has received awards from at least 10 distinguished publications, including Publisher’s Weekly and School Library Journal (both named it “Best Book of the Year”), the American Library Association and the New York Times (both named it “Notable Book of the Year”), and the San Francisco Chronicle (listed among “The Century’s Best Children’s Books”). [5]
References
- ^ Harris, Robie. "It's Perfectly Normal". Robie H. Harris -- Children's Book Author. Retrieved 2009-11-26.
- ^ "Two clever books peer into our bodies". The Sacramento Bee. September 7, 2009. p. 3D.
- ^ "Top 100 Banned/Challenged Books: 2000-2009". American Library Association. Retrieved 2010-07-07.
- ^ Associated Press (September 18, 2007). "Critic of sex education book refuses to return library copies". Seacoast Online. Retrieved 2009-11-26.
- ^ http://www.candlewick.com/book_files/0763626104.ban.1.pdf http://www.amazon.com/Its-Perfectly-Normal-Changing-Growing/dp/0763644846
