'Arthur' book faces potential ban from Florida schools

Sorry, Arthur, it's not a wonderful kind of day in Florida.

One of the books in the beloved best-selling children's series Arthur could end up banned from Florida schools after a concerned parent sent a complaint about it to his local school district. Bruce Friedman, a conservative activist and member of the Clay County School District community, filed the challenge to Marc Brown's 1989 book Arthur's Birthday on July 12. In the complaint, obtained by The Daily Beast, Friedman states that his purpose is to "protect the children."

The danger at hand? Spin the bottle.

Friedman, who has filed at least eight book challenges in the past month, took issue with the fact that a book geared towards students ages kindergarten to sixth grade refers to the kissing game.

"It is not appropriate to discuss 'spin the bottle' with elementary school children," Friedman wrote in his report, noting that the title is found in almost all district schools. "'Spin the bottle' not okay for K-5 kids."

When asked about the risk of kids reading the material, Friedman claimed that the book could "damage souls."

Friedman is currently the president of the No Left Turn in Education Florida chapter. The group, which seeks to "use all forms of media to expose the radical indoctrination in K-12 education," is known for promoting anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric and speaking out against critical race theory being taught in schools.

Arthur's Birthday details the character's upcoming birthday, which happens to fall on the same day as his friend Muffy's special day. Wanting all of their friends together at one party, Arthur hatches a plan to combine their two events. Though they never play the game in the story, the book mentions spin the bottle — once when Francine asks Arthur if the game will be played, and again at the very end, when she gives him a bottle with the words "Francine's Spin the Bottle Game" printed on it.

The book is currently pending review and will remain out of circulation until the three-person committee reviews the challenge and decides to reject or accept the request to ban it, or defer it to a larger committee.

Brown's Arthur series follows its titular young aardvark and his pals. It consists of nearly 50 books and is also the source material for the long-running PBS Kids hit series, which came to an end in 2021 after 25 seasons. Arthur's Birthday was adapted into an episode of the show which, per PBS, is aimed at viewers between the ages of 4 and 8.

The issue of censored and banned children's books has become a hot topic recently. Last year, Judy Blume, author of the cherished but controversial Are You There God, It's Me Margaret, spoke about the necessity of her work with the National Coalition Against Censorship, questioning those who participate in banning and censoring children's books.

"What are you protecting your children from?" Blume asked. "Protecting your children means educating them and arming them with knowledge, and reading and supporting what they want to read."

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