I grew up as a queer teenager in the Merrimack Valley School District. In a rural town where MAGA signs are more prevalent than cars on the road, reading books that featured characters like me became an escape. I spent years walking the same halls where “The Perks of Being a Wallflower,” an LGBTQ+ coming-of-age novel, was recently removed from the 10th grade curriculum after a single parent complaint.
Reading about the review committee’s recommendation left me angry — and sad — because I know exactly who gets hurt by decisions like this.
When adults talk about “protecting children,” they often forget that some of those children are already living the very things they want to pretend don’t exist: trauma, mental health struggles, confusing relationships, unsafe homes and questions about identity. Removing an honest book doesn’t remove those realities — it isolates the students who face them.
The parent specifically objected to 52 of the book’s 218 pages, labeling some passages
“pornography disguised as children’s literature” and objecting to scenes involving drunkenness, drug use, physical abuse, rape, abortion, a secret relationship between a teacher and a student, “disgusting sexual terms,” suicide and men meeting in parks for sexual encounters. She insisted students be kept “pure and innocent” at their “crucial age.”
High school sophomores are typically 16 years old during the school year — old enough to drive, work part-time jobs and, in many cases, legally make certain personal decisions, including sexual consent. So why can’t they learn about and discuss real-world issues? Denying them literature that honestly reflects experiences they are already likely encountering is both ignorant and harmful. Thoughtful discussion in a classroom setting equips teens to make informed decisions. Shielding them leaves students unprepared for life outside school.
Although I was fortunate not to personally face all these challenges, my participation in MVHS’s Getting to “Y” program — which analyzed the 2023 Youth Risk Behavior Survey data for Central New Hampshire — revealed how many of my peers were struggling or engaging in risky behaviors. The data showed 11.8% had attempted suicide in the past year (23.1% of LGBTQ+ students and 7.4% of heterosexual students), 22% had used marijuana in the past month (29.3% of LGBTQ+ and 20.7% of heterosexual), and 15.9% had experienced sexual violence in the past year (28.4% of LGBTQ+ and 12% of heterosexual).
These numbers show that the experiences addressed in “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” — grief, mental health challenges, sexual behavior and risky situations — are very real for local teens. The disparities highlight why it is especially important for LGBTQ+ students to see themselves represented in literature and to have a safe environment where they can learn about these challenges and their potential consequences.
“Perks” was not the only required at MVHS to help me grow. Reading “The Things They Carried” in class strengthened my respect for my brother during his nine-month deployment overseas, showing how required books can illuminate real-life struggles. Later, reading about the book’s protagonist Charlie’s experiences — navigating identity and grief over his best friend — helped me process my own emotions and cope with the death of two classmates. These books show why thoughtful, required readings matter: they help students reflect, build empathy and understand diverse challenges.
What worries me most is not that one parent objected, parents absolutely have the right to request an alternative assignment for their child. What concerns me is how a single complaint can dictate censorship that impacts an entire grade’s education — potentially affecting future classes as well.
When decisions are driven more by fear of complaints or potential disruption than by their educational value, students lose out. In such cases, the loudest objector, rather than the learning benefit, can end up determining what everyone reads.
Stories most frequently targeted in book challenges — LGBTQ+ content, marginalized perspectives, trauma or mental health — are precisely the stories that help students who feel invisible. Removing them doesn’t keep kids safe — it keeps them silent.
Merrimack Valley can still change course. Students may check out the book from the library, but that is not the same as having it taught thoughtfully with structured discussion.
Like the teacher noted in her reply, the book’s themes “encourage critical reflection rather than endorsement of the behaviors,” which is precisely what makes “Perks” so valuable. As an alum who once needed a book like that, I hope the district values honest storytelling over fear of controversy.
Students deserve literature that reflects their real lives — not just the ones adults prefer to imagine. Denying that opportunity denies students a chance to understand themselves and the world around them.
Addyson Kimball, a Webster native, is an alum of Merrimack Valley High School and served as the Class of 2025 President. She is currently a student at Syracuse University, where she is dual-majoring in political science and law, society, and policy.