The literature world is up in arms after a prominent author, who also serves as the national ambassador for young people’s literature, denigrated the quality of the majority of children’s literature.
Mac Barnett recently published an essay collection for adults, titled Make Believe: On Telling Stories to Children. In his book, he wrote, “So I now offer Barnett’s Addendum to Sturgeon’s Law: Maybe more like 94.7 percent of kids’ books are crud.”
The sentence references science fiction author Theodore Sturgeon’s famous 1957 defense of the science fiction genre. Sturgeon wrote that “ninety percent of everything is crud,” and investigated why science fiction among all other literary genres was looked down upon. He believed low quality exists in every genre—no one genre is inherently bad or should be denounced.
Barnett is the ninth national ambassador for young people’s literature and an author who has written over 60 children’s books.
He was appointed by the nonprofit Every Child a Reader and the Library of Congress (LOC) to raise “national awareness of the importance of young people’s literature as it relates to lifelong literacy, education and the development and betterment of the lives of young people” as explained on the LOC’s website.
Children’s lit community takes to social media
Authors flocked to social media to share their enragement over Barnett’s words.
In one post, a children’s fiction author explained why some members of the children’s literature community were upset, noting that Barnett’s critique of the genre could work to the advantage of bad faith actors seeking to ban books.
“He is in a position of power where he could protect and uplift us and instead he says things that cut to the bone and arm book banners? That’s why we’re mad,” the author wrote. “Not because the argument about overly didactic books has no merit. Because what he wrote doesn’t HELP CHILDREN’S LITERATURE.”
A letter has circulated calling for Every Child a Reader and the LOC, as sponsors of Barnett’s ambassadorship, to publicly address the harm caused by his words and work to minimize any damage done. The letter has collected more than 300 signatures.
At the first stop of his Make Believe book tour, during a conversation moderated by Jeff Kinney, author of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, Barnett acknowledged the backlash and apologized for what he wrote, according to a clip of the discussion shared on Threads.
Reacting to screenshots of his words shared online by writers, illustrators, and people in the children’s book community, Barnett said, “I saw that sentence and my name next to it and I was like, ‘Oh no.’ Because in a lot of ways it was the opposite . . . of the point I wanted to make in this book, which was about striving to make the best books for kids.”
He added that he would have written it differently in hindsight. “If anybody saw it and felt like I let them down, I’m so sorry,” he said. “It’s on me, I did write that sentence and I did not wrap up the argument the right way.”
Every Child a Reader and Mac Barnett did not respond to Fast Company’s requests for comment.
“The audacity and privilege is incredible”
Some commenters on social media said that Barnett’s cynical assessment of the literary world felt especially condescending coming from a white male author.
“It is absolutely disrespectful for an author, especially a white man who isn’t up against any of the obstacles his BIPOC and queer counterparts are, to call a majority of kids’ books ‘crud’ in his latest book,” one literary agent posted on Threads. “Not to mention that he’s the current National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature. The audacity and privilege is incredible.”
One author posted, “This Mac Barnett conversation is fascinating. The disparities in grace given and accountability expected are telling.”
This discourse is coincidentally taking place during Children’s Book Week, the longest-running national celebration of books for youth, which celebrates the joy of reading, schools, libraries, and bookstores.
Writer George M. Johnson posted, “Mac Barnett needs to step down,” adding that his 94.7% statement “reeks of a higher percentage than even a moms for liberty rep would say. I want him OUT.”
Johnson is the author of All Boys Aren’t Blue, one of the most banned LGBTQIA+ books in schools in the United States.
Some agree with Barnett
Not everyone disagreed with Barnett’s words. Some understood where he was coming from, believing he could’ve possibly worded his argument differently or strengthened it to avoid negative reactions.
An educator posted, “[But] this is spot on. As an elementary librarian, I’ve been ranting for several years about the absolute onslaught of moralistic, preachy, didactic books pushed on kids. And they don’t want them!”
The educator added that Barnett’s words were likely tongue in cheek and possibly “missed the mark.”
Afoma Umesi, founder and editor of Reading Middle Grade, who curates book lists and writes book reviews for kids of all ages, shared her thoughts to Substack on where Barnett was right and wrong.
“Barnett’s wry tone, which is one of his best qualities as a writer, is also what makes the 94.7 percent quote land as condescension rather than invitation for many readers,” she wrote.
Umesi explained how in a time where children’s publishing is under pressure from book banning and school library budgets are getting cut, when someone of Barnett’s position labels literature as “crud,” “it gets used by people who do not love children’s books to justify their contempt for them and it gets amplified by people who do love them but enjoy the feeling of superiority that comes with agreeing that most of it is trash.”