Discussion Question: Would You Let Your Children Read Books by Author Convicted of Possessing Child Pornography?
Children’s author K.P. Bath was sentenced to six years in prison for possessing very disturbing child pornography. Read the full CNN article here for the complete run down. According to Huffington Post, he did have a book scheduled to release last fall which his publisher (Little Brown) scraped when allegations were made public last year.
This reminded me of the discussion we had here on the blog over a year ago when I asked if an author’s personal belief system impact if or how you support them. I think there are two schools of thoughts out there. One, we should always separate the author from the book that they have written. Therefore, personal belief systems, criminal activity, etc shouldn’t factor into the equation of whether we read their books or not. And then, there are those who can not separate the author from the book so that when they find out something disturbing about the author, it essentially ruins the reading experience for them and they would likely choose not to support that author.
I was naturally upset by this author. He made a living writing for children. He also likely engaged children during school visits and book signings. At one point he was even a volunteer at the children’s library in Portland. The whole thing makes me SICK! I found his image online, and he gives me the creeps!
Personally, knowing this information I would never purchase his books or let my children read his books. As a mother, I have that choice to make. If I had previously owned his books, I would get rid of them. Even if his books don’t reflect his behavior (which I’m going to assume here that they don’t), I don’t need my children reading something from a disturbed sex offender. I feel betrayed. Even given the fact that I’ve never even heard of the guy until today, I still feel betrayed. How can he write for children and at the same time contribute to something so detrimental?
I know it’s not always possible to find out everything about every single children’s author out there before letting my children read books, but in this case, having found out about the crime, I certainly will be creating a personal book ban. Do I have time to investigate all the authors whose books are in my homes? In the case of my children, I wish I could.
An author listserve that I’m subscribed to discussed this case and to tell you the truth, I was surprised with how many comments there were that subscribe to the first school of thought – the story should have a life of its own and the author’s behavior should have no bearing on it. As a reader and as a mother, I have to disagree. The whole thing taints everything for me. I couldn’t knowingly read a children’s book with that thought in the back of my head. If I had previously read the books, information like that would change my entire opinion about the book. I clearly fall into the second school of thought.
What about you? Would you knowingly let your children read books authored by convicted child sex offenders? What would you do if you found out after having read the book? What would you do if this happened to one of your favorite children’s authors? Or does story reign supreme and all else doesn’t matter? I’m very curious to hear what everybody thinks.
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Hey Natasha. I’m glad you’ve written this. I hadn’t known anything about this case until yesterday morning and it’s been on my mind ever since. I actually listened to the audiobook versions of his first two books and and quite enjoyed them, but that was a year ago before I knew anything about him. Now, I don’t think I could go back and listen to them knowing more about this creep.
It is not easy to separate the author or artist from the work, even though intellectually I agree that the work and the artist should have separate lives. Really it would be hard to enjoy much music, painting, and yes writing, if we went by who was a creep. I do think time does some of the separating for us, but I also think that importance or impact of the work does as well. For instance, this guy’s work was just light adventure stories (I hope that was all and I didn’t miss some creepy subtext) but some authors who turn out to be negative forces in the world have written things that are highly positive forces. I’m thinking specifically of the Education of Little Tree by “Forrest Carter.” You might already know about this, but his name was really Asa Earl Carter and he was a racist, a full blown nasty KKK member. Yet, the book is nothing but spiritual enlightenment and, to the young me who read it, life changing in a positive way. I’m glad I didn’t judge the book by its author and I think it has its own life beyond the strange (and obviously conflicted) man who wrote it.
So, in short I think, as with all things, there is no cut and dry, black and white answer to this. It is case by case and book by book.
on July 11th, 2010 at 10:39 pmThis really is hard. You’re right, that you can’t search out the moral background of every author you read. Well, you could, but you’d have little time for reading after that. In the case of children’s authors, and in this case, we do know. I definitely wouldn’t read this author after reading the news article about him.
on July 11th, 2010 at 11:26 pmUgh. How ugly. I’d say books should be judged independently from their authors, but beliefs are a bit different than, say, endorsement of crimes (especially hateful acts such as child pornography).
So no, I wouldn’t read any books by a convicted sex offender.
on July 12th, 2010 at 12:11 amI agree with Alessandra, for me the distinction lies in if it is criminal or beliefs. Criminal then I would not buy the books. If it is a question of beliefs then it becomes more of a grey area for me.
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on July 12th, 2010 at 4:23 amMy teenager and I were having this exact same discussion the other day, both with books and music. He said that you have to judge on the work alone; I totally disagreed for the reasons you cited above. At the end, all I could do was tell him that when he was a parent, he would change his mind!
on July 12th, 2010 at 5:33 amSee, to me pedophilia is sort of in its own category. I just can’t stomach the idea of lining his pockets with cash, even if the book is excellent.
But I get into battles with some of the school moms over similar issues. When The Golden Compass came out, they were all banning their kids from seeing it because the author or the director or whoever was an aetheist. My point here was if it is entertaining, and the movie doesn’t have those messages in it, then I don’t care. Another issue was that the author of the Warrior Series about the cats was an aetheist, and they were banning those books. Does that mean I can’t buy a Metallica CD? I can’t download a particular Marilyn Manson song that I like? I think sometimes we need to lighten up. But like I said, pedophilia is a different matter. If I am aware that an author has been convicted of such things, I won’t be supporting them.
on July 12th, 2010 at 6:01 amIt’s tough. The rational part of me says the book is separate from the author but personal feelings are never rational. I would have the same reaction as you did. I couldn’t look at the books the same way again knowing what the author did.
An author’s beliefs are another thing. If they’ve committed a horrible crime because of them that’s different but I can’t control how someone thinks and don’t want to (I’m with Sandy).
Parenting is never black or white especially when you have young children. We want to do all we can to protect them while they can’t protect themselves.
on July 12th, 2010 at 6:37 amWow..what a question!
Typically, I try to separate authors’ “real life” from their writing. But in this case, as Sandy said, it’s completely different. There is no way I could/would let my child read a book written by an author convicted of such a horrid, awful crime.
on July 12th, 2010 at 6:46 amWow! This is a great questions, but, of course, very disturbing. My answer is NO. I could not in any way support a person who does this/participates in harming children. The CNN article listed specific information: types of photos, and it is beyond disgusting.
In theory I agree-separate the author’s work from the author’s life, but some things have to take precedence over that. Some things are just unforgivable. Or at least, unsupportable.
on July 12th, 2010 at 7:00 amThank you for bringing this to my attention.
I am one of those people that rarely knows a thing about the author, and even if I do, I usually separate the author from the book. I love Ender’s Game even I disagree with Card’s belief system. I read Mein Kampf despite the fact that I hate Hitler. When it comes to kids though, forget it. I would never read a kids book written by a pedophile let alone read it to children.
on July 12th, 2010 at 7:35 amI think that there is a difference between someone having different views from me (i.e. homosexuality is bad) and being amoral. Child pornography is atrocious! I would never support that in any way shape or form.
on July 12th, 2010 at 8:47 amyes. i wouldn’t encourage it but i also will never censor what my (at this point fictional) children read.
on July 12th, 2010 at 9:06 amI did more thinking after we twitted last night… I think that I’d be fine reading an author whose belief systems, or even sexual preferences, differed from mine. After all, how else would we grow if we only interacted with what we knew.
That said, child pornography is not a belief system, sexual preference, or anything that even the most liberal of liberals would condone. It’s a crime. Not one of passion, either, but one of calculation and premeditation. After all, it’s not like the world just bombards you with child porn, you have to go get it. So, while I might let my child (eventually) read something by an author who’s racist, or bigoted, or a murderer, I will not let him read something by someone like K.P. Bath. I mean, who even really knows if he got into writing children’s books because he’d then have a way to get close to children? Ugh. Just that thought gives me the uber-creepies!
on July 12th, 2010 at 9:38 amThis really isn’t a moral dilemma for me at all. I would never allow my children to read a book by a convicted felon. Period. I don’t support that kind of behavior and by buying a book authored by a felon or even checking one out from the library, I am supporting that person.
I can separate the person from their work. Many authors and artists are quite liberal in their political ideology, and I am conservative. But, it doesn’t prevent me from reading their work. However, in the case of someone who has committed a crime, including one so sick and awful as child pornography, that is something that I can not overlook.
on July 12th, 2010 at 10:07 amI could definitely never support him by buying his book, because that’s totally creepy and disgusting. However, if Daniel found his book at the library and really wanted to read it, I would let him (assuming of course the books don’t have some creepy sexual thing going on).
on July 12th, 2010 at 10:08 amThis is a tough one for me.
It’s a no-brainer that I wouldn’t spend money on a book by a pedophile. I wouldn’t introduce my daughter to a book by one.
If she came to me asking about buying/reading such a book, I wouldn’t forbid it. I’d explain my concerns, and with my daughter, that would probably be enough to stop her.
If it wasn’t enough, I’d read it first, and discuss any content issues before, during and after reading as needed.
I can imagine situations where I’d absolutely say no, but they are very, very rare. My primary job is giving her the tools to make good decisions and to deal with the results of bad ones!
on July 12th, 2010 at 10:36 amJust caught this chat on Twitter…and what a fascinating one at that!
Because I don’t yet have children of my own (someday! But I do love kids!), I find these conversations really interesting and often try to imagine what I would do if I were in a parent’s shoes. Hypothetically speaking, for me I would think that this would depend greatly on the age of the child. If I had a 16 year old who heard about the pedophile story on the news and was so outraged by it that he or she wanted to check out the book from the library in order to see what this guy was all about (”research”, so to speak), I’d say go for it. It would be educational and eye-opening for them.
But, if the child was the age group that the books are intended for (I checked them out on Amazon and they seem to be middle school grade-ish), I would likely have a different opinion. When I read a book I really like, I often reach out to the author and tell them so via e-mail, or try to interview them on my blog. I like building relationships with authors whose works I admire. I would hope that my kids would be the same way (given the proper internet supervision to do so), and would “follow” the careers of authors they like. That being said, I would definitely NOT want my child admiring/following the career of a known pedophile!! So no, if they were of a particular age, I would not let them read this creepo’s books.
on July 12th, 2010 at 11:13 amI would not, and will not, read a book by an author that I know is guilty of a crime against children, nor would I allow my children to read his books. It’s not something one can un-learn.
Children don’t just read a book, they fall in love with their books. Knowing that this monster was writing for children who would adore him and his stories makes me want to vomit.
To give an analogy: We teach our kids that not all baseball players are heroes – some of them cheat. I don’t want my kids looking up to anyone with questionable character. I hold authors to the same moral standard that I would hold baseball players. They are no hero if they are criminals. And THIS criminal is the worst kind.
Like you, Natasha, I didn’t know who K.P. Bath was before this article came out…but as I said, I know him now, and he disgusts me. People like this shouldn’t exist.
on July 12th, 2010 at 12:18 pmYou brought up a really great question, Natasha, and this is a fascinating discussion. I don’t have any kids (yet) so I can only imagine what I’d do, but I feel like these are books that I wouldn’t read, recommend, or teach (though I wouldn’t ask for them to be pulled off the shelves, either). I do think that it’s important to maintain a line between the work itself and the author – plenty of great authors are known for being racist, sexist, anti-semitic, etc in their personal lives- but to me this particular instance goes beyond that. Because of the nature of this man’s crimes, and the nature of his books (as children’s books) I just feel like on a fundamental level it would be impossible for his personal beliefs not to mix with his writing in some small way. And because of that, his books are not something I’d willingly put into the hands of my children. I wouldn’t want to support the author through buying them or taking them out of the library, either. But I also recognize that I may be judging the books themselves unfairly here, and I wouldn’t stop someone else from reading them if they felt otherwise.
on July 12th, 2010 at 12:34 pmI think that line is just too close — writing for children AND abusing them? Doesn’t work for me. It makes everything about the books suspect.
I think if someone was accused of something else, I might overlook it (from a choose-to-read standpoint).
In fact many years ago, a cookbook author I loved was accused of some sort of inappropriate behavior with a minor. I never found out if it was true or not, but I still love one of his cookbooks in particular and still use it.
on July 12th, 2010 at 12:38 pmWhat a hard question.
My answer, at it’s simplest with pontificating, would be that like you, I’d never buy the book. However, if my child already has the book and like it then I’d just leave it alone.
on July 12th, 2010 at 1:48 pmI think for me, I would absolutely not want to read his books no matter what. But even for those who don’t agree with this line of thinking, he was writing children’s books!! And I think that makes it intensely worse. Like he was reaching out, in a way, to those children he abused, so in this case it makes it really hard to separate him as an author.
on July 12th, 2010 at 2:26 pmI would never bring a book written by someone guilty of a crime against children into my home or knowingly let my children or myself read one. End of story.
on July 12th, 2010 at 2:58 pmNo way, no how would I bring a book into my home (knowingly) for my children written by a convinted child abuser. I believe child pornography is abuse. For an adult book it is a different ballgame.
on July 12th, 2010 at 5:43 pmI usually don’t pay too much attention to the author’s personal beliefs, ethics etc. Unless they are really out there and very vocal about it and turns me off. However, when I discover something about an author such as being a pedophile, racist, etc involving criminal activity, it does influence my decision not to buy their books. I don’t want to support them. I couldn’t fathom buying a children’s book from Bath now that I know about it. That’s just too gross.
on July 12th, 2010 at 5:47 pmJust for the record, the author in question was not convicted of child abuse. He was convicted of possessing child pornography.
I would not be okay with buying any of his books because I would not want to be putting any money into his hands. However, assuming the books don’t contain anything inappropriate, then I wouldn’t have a problem with my child reading it. As far as I can tell he’s not writing about child pornography or anything like that. I suppose I’m in the minority here.
I don’t understand people who say they would be okay with their children reading books by a murderer (a criminal), but not a child pornographer. Is one really more acceptable than the other?
on July 12th, 2010 at 7:17 pmI personally would not want to help support this person by buying their books and I would encourage my children to do the same. My children are older though, and they would be free to make the decision themselves (they are 15 and almost 18), but I would hope they would feel the same as me…..
on July 12th, 2010 at 7:41 pmI understand and often agree with the basic emotions of people on this thread, but I also am a strong believer in Socratic Debate. and I see a lot of reaction without further questioning …
If the book was a 150 years old (and the author not longer alive obviously)would you care as much?
Would it make a difference if he was writing for adults?
Would you let your children read the works of Plato? It is very likely he not only had sex with minors, but also owned slaves. Does it make it okay because of the time period and laws of the place he lived?
on July 12th, 2010 at 8:25 pmThis would be a whole different discussion if he didn’t write books for children. I am all for separating the work from the author, but when it comes down to kids, it is a whole different ballgame.
Parents have the responsibility of crafting their child’s environment. There are things that we shield them from because they are not old enough to process them. It is unrealistic to think that we can do a background search of every author, cashier, artist, etc that they come into contact with, but it would be irresponsible not to react when we KNOW of a person with a negative history.
I am all for rehabilitation and for allowing criminals to get on with their, hopefully productive, lives. Still, this one just creeps me out.
on July 12th, 2010 at 9:06 pmRyan, I don’t think it’s a good comparison (even though it is a thought provoking question) because we can’t judge someone who lived 1,500 years ago by today’s standards, or even someone who lived 150 years ago.
One hundred fifty years ago, at age 13 you could be married with kids and owning property.
I think most of the sentiments here are that people simply don’t want to financially support the author.
The life expectancy was also around 40, so if you weren’t married at age 20 (middle age) you’d already be “old”.
@Gwen, I might be in the minority but I don’t think pedophiles can be rehabilitated. That’s like telling someone they have to stop liking blonds with long legs. You can’t trump nature.
on July 13th, 2010 at 7:34 amI would only get the book if it was approppriate for my child & something I thought he would want. Who the author is never ever matters to me. And it still wouldn’t. I’d likely get it from the library so wouldn’t have the whole cash in pocket worry.
I strongly disapprove of child pornography etc. But to me that doesn’t mean they don’t have other legit talents. Such as writing. I won’t refuse to buy something associated w a murderer, who I also strongly disagre with.
I would not take my child to a book reading or signing or anything where they would meet an author charged w child pornography or anything related. But reading the book in my own home is not the same. For me it would all depend on the book itself before I would say yes or no.
on July 13th, 2010 at 8:50 amYou can’t separate a person from their acts and I can’t separate an author who is convicted of possessing child pornography from the books they’ve written. We can’t investigate the personal lives of authors we read but when we know they are despicable, evil people whose actions endorse the mistreatment and abuse of children, I for one cannot read what they’ve written. And I certainly wouldn’t purchase a book that would make that person one cent richer!
on July 13th, 2010 at 3:16 pmfor me it is a matter of not giving them my financial support by buying their work.
When Woody Allen married a girl that was for all practical purposes his stepdaughter, I stopped seeing his movie, even though I had enjoyed them a great deal before. I would not pay to see a Roman Polanski movie, since even if he is a ‘Great Artist’, I also think he raped an underage girl. And while I think The Passion is one of the greatest movies ever made, Mel Gibson is pretty much on my ‘Do Not Support’ list.
on July 13th, 2010 at 4:26 pmThey can get the money they live on from someone else, not me.
One prominent character in my work is a child (a little boy), and just for myself–I wouldn’t impose this choice on anybody else–I wouldn’t read a book by somebody so insensitive to children. Just kind of a “karma” feeling….
on July 14th, 2010 at 4:52 pmAbsolutely not.
We authors can be a tricky lot. What hidden messages may be embedded in his writing? Is what I’m saying a reach? Perhaps. But not by much.
Paranoia aside, I refuse to support the work of a monster.
on July 15th, 2010 at 12:29 pmAgree with you Howard. What is in his writing?
Aside from that I wouldn’t want to support this person.
Though I might someday actually get around to reading Hitler’s book, proceeds don’t support him nor his cause.
Interestingly, it used to be perfectly legal for say a murderer to make any amount of money writing/speaking about the crime and or victim. Now they are not allowed to profit when directly talking about their crimes.
on July 15th, 2010 at 3:14 pmI know I’m late to the game, but wanted to join in on the conversation.
For me, abusing a child in any way is one of the worst things that you can do (and him supporting child pornography is a form of child abuse as far as I’m concerned). I think I am more likely to not want to have anything to do with an author who is linked to child molestation (aka supporting the child pornographic industry) than to an author who, say, robbed someone. There is a creep factor that would make it hard for me to even hold the book in my hands once I know what the author is up to. Although I am not about book banning, I would (presumably) be the one having to read the book to my child — and if I can’t stomach the idea of being in any way associated with a certain person, then I am obviously going to have a hard time reading a book that they created in the same mind that they fantasize about children.
on July 26th, 2010 at 6:46 pm