Rereading and the Impact on Practice

Abstract

“I read Little House on the Prairie when I was a child and it didn’t make me racist”,
“the kids love Indian in the Cupboard”, “it is our history we should include it and not censor”.
These are all sentiments expressed in librarian groups. How much of this sentiment is based on our
own nostalgia for the books of our youth? If we were to engage in rereading these books that are of
the childhood canon would we be so certain that we should engage our youth in experiencing these
titles? Would we be defensive of arguments that these books need to be carefully curated and
introduced to students? Or not introduced at all? Censorship and the recent attempts in the United
States as a backlash to diversity, equity and inclusion practices tend toward simple solutions of
complex conversations. Rereading childhood favorites may complicate the answers and bring
nuance to a complex conversation. This paper examines one person's attempt to reckon with what
the books of her youth taught her, while also opening discussion with practitioners about the impact
of rereading on their own practice.