Turkey bans sale of Rebel Girls to children

The Rebel Girls creators have said they are “saddened” by the Turkish government’s decision to ban the sale of Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls to under 18s.

The children’s book series is a collection of stories about rebellious women, including Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai, mathematician Ada Lovelace and former first lady Michelle Obama. Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls was written and published by Elena Favilli and Francesca Cavallo and has been translated into 47 languages to date.

The Turkish government's board for the protection of minors from obscene publications ruled four children’s books - including Rebel Girls - as having a “detrimental” influence on children, according to AFP on Friday. Under the decision, Rebel Girls can only be sold to adults and must be concealed from view in shops.

Favilli, founder and c.e.o. of Rebel Girls, said: “We are deeply saddened to hear of this decision based - according to news reports - on the belief that 'some of the writings in the book will have a detrimental influence on the minds of those under the age of 18’.

“We created these stories so that girls and women all over the world have access to the largest and most diverse representation of women who are pioneers, leaders, champions, creators, and warriors. Those stories should be available to all, so we will continue to tell these stories including releasing our new chapter books in 2019 and 2020: Ada Lovelace Cracks the Code, Madam C.J. Walker Builds a Business, Junko Tabei Masters the Mountains and Dr. Wangari Maathai Plants a Forest.

“To us, being a 'rebel girl' means living on your own terms and resisting society’s expectations. Being a rebel is about finding a way of succeeding against the odds and making the most out of your circumstances. Rebel Girls exists to create a more equal world. This incident proves the ongoing need of the Rebel Girls movement."

Elisabeth Brami’s The Declaration of the Rights of Boys and Girls, which is illustrated by Estelle Billon-Spagnol, is also included in the ruling. Dublin-based indie publisher Little Island hold English language rights for the UK and Ireland. Publisher Matthew Parkinson-Bennett said he felt the Turkish Government may have taken issue with the book’s tolerant attitude towards sexuality.

He said: “What is concerning as a publisher is when this is done at a state level. Then you have a whole country where kids are going to be denied this. The book does contain the message ‘The right to fall in love with anyone they like: boy, girl or both’. I suspect that may be the basis of the objection. Which makes it all the more sad that children won't have access to this book, or others that contain that message.

"The messages in the book are as a girl you can be interested in science and can aspire to be a politician or play football at school. For boys, it’s like if you are upset you can cry or ask for a hug or you can do ballet classes. There are important messages in it and it’s a really valuable book - I’ve given it to loads of friends who have young kids. I do wonder whether whoever is making this decision has really looked inside the book and whether they are making a decision on the title or description.”

Turkish publishers for Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls and The Declaration of the Rights of Boys and Girls are yet to respond to The Bookseller's requests for comment.