I like to think of books as both mirrors and windows. When I was young, I saw myself in the books I read — the girl I was, the girl I wanted to be. Fortunately today, more kids can see themselves in books, whether they are children of color, from single-parent homes, with same-sex parents or with other different experiences.

Through books, they can see they are not alone. But books are also windows. Through books, we can walk in others’ shoes. Kids can learn about other cultures, other struggles. They can see that despite outward differences, they are all very much the same. Families are families, friends are friends, love is love.

Book bans seek to fog those mirrors and close those windows. They seek to impose one point of view on what a whole community can read. I have complete faith in our librarians, and parents themselves, who know their collections well. They put the right (age-appropriate) book in the right hands. They deserve our trust and our respect.

KAREN EMMERLING

Owner, Beach Books

Seaside