Jen Petro-Roy’s ‘P.S.
I Miss Youby Jen Petro-Roy, a middle-grade novel which has drawn rave early reviews and tackles timely subjects.
I Miss Yous buzz and timeliness, educators around the country have been turning its author away.
Credit: Macmillan (2)
The move has emerged as controversial, to say the least.
Read on below, and pre-order the book ahead of its March 6 releasehere.
On the Controversy of P.S.
I Miss You, by Jen Petro-Roy
I didnt set out to write a controversial book.
I still dont think Iwrotea controversial book.P.S.
After Cilla leaves, Evie copes by writing letters.
She writes about how hard seventh grade is.
She writes about drifting apart from her best friends.
She writes about June, the new girl in school, the one whos funny and silly and pretty.
That Evie might be a lesbian.
ThatEviemight disappoint her religious parents, too.
We live in a country that tries to dictate who we can marry and what bathrooms we can use.
I am not anti-religion in the slightest.
I was raised Catholic, and the majority of my family members are still part of that faith community.
As for my own beliefs…Im not so sure.
There was no one moment when I started questioning my faith.
There was no catastrophic tragedy that happened that made me think that God might not exist.
I just started questioning.
I started debating in my head, much like Evie does inP.S.
I question, like so many children do.
They are more likely to speak up against the bedrock institutions that have governed our society for decades.
My publisher, Macmillan Childrens, and my imprint, Feiwel & Friends, are amazing.
I Miss Youfrom the start.
They tried to send me on that book tour.
Macmillan contacted independent booksellers and asked them to reach out to local public schools.
Macmillan pitched my book and the booksellers loved it.
Yet the schools that they contacted all except one refused the school visit.
The educators said thatP.S.
I Miss Youhad content that was too heavy or mature for their students.
That they were uncomfortable with the themes that I addressed in my book.
Was it the teen pregnancy?
Was it Evies questioning of her faith or her crush on another girl?
Was it the flawed ways that her parents behave?
Or was it a combination of all of that?
All I know is that to me, these issues are not mature content.
There is no sex in my book, which is aimed for children ages 9 to 13.
There is no making out.
There are no Satanic rituals or polemics against religion.
There is simply the message that you could believe what you want to believe.
it’s possible for you to love (or crush on) whomever you want.
you’re free to decide for yourself when authority figures are wrong.
Children need to hear these messages.
They need to know that they can find supportsomewhere, regardless of their sexual orientation or their religious beliefs.
And they need to know that they arent alone.
Everything gets a lot easier if you know someone is on your side, though.
To know that your teachers and your school and your community approve of that message.
The world is a difficult place, but its also a hopeful place.
Theres nothing controversial about that at all.
