Although the school district canceled her appearance, author Ellen Hopkins went forward with her visit despite controversy surrounding her book.

Norman Public Schools canceled her scheduled visit to Whittier Middle School Tuesday after a parent requested a formal review of Hopkins' book last week to determine if it was age-appropriate.

"It's not about censorship or banning books," said the parent, who asked that her name be withheld to protect her child. "It's about the responsibility of the administration to pick age-appropriate material."

The book in question, "Glass," is loosely based on Hopkins' daughter's story about becoming addicted to methamphetamine. The free verse novel discusses drugs and sex and uses explicit language and cuss words.

"These students could not go watch a movie with this content without parental approval," the parent said. The author's Web site said "Glass" is designed for ages 14 and up. The parent said after reading the book she questioned whether it was appropriate to make the book available to sixth- through eighth-graders in the Whittier library.

Hopkins, however, said it's important for middle school students to hear about the negative implications of drug use and addiction.

"This stuff is there, and just to say this stuff doesn't happen in middle school is short-sighted," she said. The time to educate students about addiction is when they are in middle school, Hopkins said, because by late high school students are already on their chosen path and it may be too late.

"Middle school is the place to stop this stuff," she said. Her first book, "Crank," is about her daughter's struggle with addiction. "Glass" is the sequel, in which the main character relapses into her meth addiction.

"So the behaviors are worse, but that's what happens with addiction," Hopkins said. She said she wanted to show how drug addiction can happen and what happens when one goes deeper into addiction. She said a parent who picked up "Glass" without that context might think it was too sensationalized.

She said she still doesn't see, however, why she was asked not to come to Whittier to speak. She said she intended to talk about what she normally does in school visits -- her own experiences as an author.

"What I talk about when I come in is kind of the road to publication," she said.

Hopkins said she never got a straight answer as to why her visit was canceled, but she decided to come to Norman "to face down censorship challenges."

She spoke Tuesday night at an event not put on by NPS at Hillsdale Freewill Baptist College. Hopkins said about 150 students, parents, teachers and librarians showed up from around the area.

"It was a great turnout last night, and it did open it up to a broader audience," she said. She added she would be happy to come back to Norman if she was invited.

The parent who filed the formal objection about the books said she didn't know about the author's visit until her daughter brought her an order form for "Glass" passed out at school in anticipation of the visit.

The parent said she read the book at that point, and did not think it was appropriate for middle school students. Along with other parents, she asked the school what they could do about the book. They were told they could file a request for review of the book. Only one parent needed to sign the complaint, and because she had read the book this parent was the one to sign it.

The parent said it was only a few days later that someone called her and told her the author's visit had been canceled.

Superintendent Joe Siano said the parent followed the district's standard procedure.

"We do have a procedure in the school system that's a policy of the board of education that gives parents the opportunity to review and challenge curriculum for appropriateness," Siano said.

The author's visit was canceled because the book was under review and the review would not be completed in time, he said.

Hopkins' books that are in the district's middle school libraries will stay in place until the review is completed. The review is being conducted to determine if "Glass" is appropriate for middle school students; it is not a reflection on the books in general, Siano said.

"I believe we have an author who is a quality and well-reviewed writer," he said. The question for the review committee is "did we schedule this event at the right grade level," he said.

Julianna Parker Jones 366-3541 jparker@normantranscript.com