Age Banding Controversy Continues in Great Britain

Posted on July 10, 2008

The practice of "age banding" -- listing the suitable age of reader for children's books -- has infuriated British authors who say that age banding is inappropriate. J.K. Rowling and Philip Pullman are just two of the bestselling authors who oppose age-banding. The Publishers Association issued a pledge saying that it would first consult with the author, but the authors aren't convinced.

The statement from the Publishers Association follows a meeting it had last week with the Society of Authors and Pullman, representing the campaign against age banding.
Speaking today, Pullman was unconvinced: "Our point of view remains that consultation is not enough," he said. "We could consult and consult to the point of nausea and publishers could still turn around and insist that a book be banded."
For the Publishers Association, Children's Book Group secretary Kate Bostock conceded that one new book, Keith Gray's Ostrich Boys, had already been published with a teen logo by Random House against the author's wishes. "It was a dreadful in-house mistake," she said, "but that's the only author affected". For the rest, Bostock said, "well over half of the books being published this autumn will have age guidance, but all of them have agreement from the authors."

Many parents want age banding so they know if the material is suitable for young children or not. In the U.S., the publishers regularly list age guidance on children's books, but it really has more to do with the reading level of the prose.