School libraries' manual 'contradicts' ban on Mario Azzopardi works - publishers

Obscene or sexual literature for young adults does not disqualify it from inclusion in secondary school libraries, says a report penned by Joseph Boffa, a former head of the School Libraries Section (SLS), who is purportedly behind the ad hoc banning of Mario Azzopardi’s short stories for teenagers.

In a statement, Horizons Publications referred to a document titled Manual for School Librarians and bearing the signature of Joseph Boffa, a retired official who until recently was head of the School Library Services within the Education Division.

The statement comes in the wake of an alleged SLS directive which Horizons Publications claims was issued to not include two works of fiction by Azzopardi in secondary school libraries.

The two books are Vampir u rakkonti ohra, published by Horizons and Alicia titkellem mill-Imwiet, published by Merlin library, which have been classified as 16+ by the SLS. The latter was awarded the teenage category award by the National Book Council in 2008.

The decision to ban the book from secondary school libraries may have been taken unilaterally by former SLS head Joseph Boffa, who is retired but who - according to Horizons Publications - still strongly influences its running.

Current SLS head Marisa Calleja appears to be keeping a low profile in the matter, denying that an official directive had been issued. The matter later prompted education minister Dolores Christina to call for an investigation into the decision.

Horizons' spokesperson Anna Camiller said a section in the school manual was plagiarised from an internet site, but that it invites the SLS to consider books for school libraries on whether "the material presents life in its true proportions, in an artistic way.”

The books banned by Boffa, which Camilleri said was on approval of SLS head Marisa Calleja, "are far from being obscene, certainly do meet the criteria of artistic merit, as attested by professional critics and by the fact that Azzopardi has been awarded national recognition for his ground breaking, young adult literature."

Camilleri added that the manual  refers to the Public Library Regulations of 1974 which consider students of 14 years and over to young adults. "Therefore the banning of adolescent literature books in secondary schools runs counter to this assumption."

She also pointed out that the manual itself however maintains that “a balance should be reached between “the freedom to read” and “the legal framework of laws regarding minors,” and that any “complaints” should be resolved informally “at the individual school level.”

“The unilateral decision to ban Azzopardi’s books 'officially' contradicts this tenet and does not leave any space for librarians’ professional discretion,” she said, adding that the manual recommends the teacher-librarian selects books for the school.

Camilleri said a list of 70 foreign authors recommended in Boffa’s Manual for School Librarians includes Philip Pullman, a "self-confessed, avowed atheist" and a writer identified for his strong anti-Christian bias. “It defies all reason why an atheist is deemed fit to feature in a list of books for school libraries while at the same time, issue literature for young adults by an awarded veteran local author is subjectively shunned," she said.

Camilleri urged the education authorities to “look closely into the anomalies featured in the Manual circulated by the SLS and to publish the result of the investigation promised by the Ministry of Education.”

The spokesperson also requested that the National Book Council make public the contents of an “internal report” which was prepared some weeks ago for the consumption of interested parties, including Horizons Publications, but which still has to pass to the public domain.