Dispute Over Book Leads Library To Cancel Speech

ANOKA, (AP) - A dispute over a novel has led a Minnesota library to cancel an appearance by its author.

"Eleanor & Park" by Rainbow Rowell, of Omaha, Neb., tells the story of two outsider teens in the 1980s who find a common bond in music. It was selected for the Anoka-Hennepin School District's high school summer reading program. But some parents objected, saying the book wasn't age-appropriate because of its heavy use of profanity.

The school district partnered with the Anoka County Library to fund the summer reading program, and the library invited Rowell to speak. She was due to visit this month, but the library withdrew the invitation over the controversy.

The president of the Anoka-Hennepin teachers' union says the book sends a positive for teens.