Controversy colors teen book

A battle could be brewing in the book stacks over a new novel about teens and oral sex.

Rainbow Party, aimed at the teen market (ages 14 and up), has some booksellers and librarians wondering whether author Paul Ruditis sensationalizes the subject — and, more significantly, whether they should carry it on their shelves.

"Parents count on us to have books that are appropriate for their children," says Monica Holmes of Hicklebee's Books in San Jose, Calif. "We're not a conservative group, but this one is outside our safe area."

Elly Gore, a buyer for Harry W. Schwartz Bookshops in Milwaukee, concedes that the book is "edgy" but will stock it mainly because, she says, "I knew that if I skipped it, I would have been censoring it. ... I couldn't do that."

Rainbow Party (Simon & Schuster, $8.99) is about a group of teens who plan an oral-sex party at which each of the girls wears a different color of lipstick. Read the rest HERE.