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<ul class="summary-list"><li>Scholastic said it has stopped distributing a book by <keyword id="1638741" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Dav-Pilkey">Dav Pilkey</keyword> for perpetuating "passive <keyword id="44060" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Racism">racism</keyword>."</li><li>"We are deeply sorry for this serious mistake," the children's book publisher said in a statement. </li><li>The pulled book, "The Adventures of Ook and Gluk," hit bookshelves in 2010.</li></ul><p>Scholastic has pulled a children's book, "The Adventures of Ook and Gluk," for perpetuating "passive racism."</p><p>The publisher said in <a href="http://mediaroom.scholastic.com/press-release/scholastic-regarding-adventures-ook-and-gluk">a statement</a> the decision was made on March 22 with the author, Dav Pilkey, who is known for the wildly successful "<keyword id="4601173" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Captain-Underpants">Captain Underpants</keyword>" series. </p><p>In his own statement, Pilkey <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=At1e7buY2Nw">said</a> the book was "intended to showcase diversity, equality, and non-violent conflict resolution." </p><p>The book is about friends who save the world using kung fu and the principles found in Chinese philosophy, he said. </p><p>"But this week it was brought to my attention that this book also contains harmful racial stereotypes and passively racist imagery," the author said. "I wanted to take this opportunity to publicly apologize for this. It was and is wrong and harmful to my Asian readers, friends, and family, and to all Asian people."</p><div type="image" title="The Adventures of Ook and Gluk" height="550" width="370" msid="81734795" hostid="261"></div><p>Scholastic's decision on the book - subtitled "Kung-Fu Cavemen from the Future" - followed a similar decision from <keyword id="596040" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Dr-Seuss">Dr. Seuss</keyword> Enterprises, which said earlier this month it would <a href="https://www.insider.com/dr-seuss-books-no-longer-published-racist-imagery-2021-3">cease publication</a> of six Dr. Seuss titles.</p><p>In the days after that announcement, other Dr. Seuss titles <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/dr-seuss-books-for-sale-amazon-cancel-culture-canceled-racist-2021-3">soared to the top</a> of Amazon's bestseller chart. The books <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/discontinued-dr-seuss-books-with-racist-imagery-removed-by-ebay-2021-3">were pulled</a> from eBay. Politicians and commentators claimed that <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ted-cruz-donald-trump-jrcancel-culture-dr-seuss-week-2021-3">"cancel culture"</a> had come for Dr. Seuss.</p><p>Pilkey said he and Scholastic would work to remove copies of "The Adventures of Ook and Gluk" from bookshops and library shelves, although it's unclear whether <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/dr-seuss-week-pulled-six-books-but-stay-on-library-shelves-2021-3">libraries would remove</a> the book.</p><p>As of Sunday, Scholastic's websites in the US and elsewhere had pulled the title. Current orders won't be fulfilled, the company said. </p><p>"Throughout our 100-year history, we have learned that trust must be won every day by total vigilance," Scholastic said in its statement.</p><p>It added: "It is our duty and privilege to publish books with powerful and positive representations of our diverse society, and we will continue to strengthen our review processes as we seek to support all young readers."</p><p>Pilkey said his advance and royalties from the book would be given to charities. He said: "I hope that you, my readers, will forgive me, and learn from my mistake that even unintentional and passive stereotypes and racism are harmful to everyone. I apologize, and I pledge to do better." </p>

Scholastic has pulled a book by 'Captain Underpants' author Dav Pilkey over its 'passive racism' and racial stereotypes

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Comic-book sales hit $2.075 billion in 2021, the biggest year for the industry ever.</li><li>Experts say the surge is due to a number of factors, including certain genres like Japanese manga.</li></ul><p>It's never been a better time to be in the comics business.</p><p>Comic-book sales — including graphic novels, single issues, and digital comics — hit $2.075 billion in 2021, a 62% increase from the previous year and a 70% increase over 2019, according to <a href="https://www.comichron.com/yearlycomicssales/industrywide/2021-industrywide.html">a report released last week</a> by the comic-sales research website Comichron and ICv2, a website that covers the comics business.</p><p>Comic sales have been steadily rising since 2017, according to the report, but last year marked the biggest year in the industry's history.</p><p>"Publishers made more selling comics content [in 2021] than in any year in the history of the business, even when adjusted for inflation," said Comichron founder John Jackson Miller in the report.</p><p>And the industry is on pace to have an even better 2022. Milton Griepp, the founder of ICv2, told Insider that sales in comic stores were up through May compared to the same period last year.</p><p>Griepp attributes the surge primarily to pandemic-related consumer trends, when people turned to activities they could do at home. "People focused on their hobbies more, which included collecting, so the collector side of the comic business has grown, along with prices for back issues," he told Insider. </p><p style="font-weight: 400;">But certain genres have helped bolster the industry.</p><div type="image" title="dog man" height="1066" width="1422" msid="92855108" hostid="261" sizebytes="65768"></div><h2 style="font-weight: 400;">Manga and children's comics are massive</h2><p style="font-weight: 400;">Sales of Japanese manga like "Attack on Titan" have surged, Griepp said. Units sold <a href="https://icv2.com/articles/news/view/50543/u-s-manga-sales-more-doubled-2021">doubled in 2021</a> compared to 2020, previous data from NPD BookScan showed (and that only included bookstores and online retailers that report to BookScan, and doesn't include comic stores or digital sales).</p><p style="font-weight: 400;">Eric LaGaccia, the owner of the comic shop Action City Comics in the Greenpoint neighborhood of Brooklyn, NY, said that increased visibility has helped manga sales rise.</p><p style="font-weight: 400;">He noted that many streaming services, from Netflix to HBO Max, stream anime titles adapted from manga storylines, and, as with mainstream superhero content, consumers seek out the source material.</p><p style="font-weight: 400;">LaGaccia said that children's graphic novels are also immensely popular, because parents see them as a "gateway into reading."</p><p style="font-weight: 400;">There's no better example of the success of children's comics than author Dav Pilkey's "Dog Man" books for young readers. Of the <a href="https://www.comicsbeat.com/looking-at-npd-bookscan-2021-and-its-a-doozy/">top five best-selling graphic novels</a> of 2021, according to BookScan's <keyword id="11896041" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="analysis" source="Orion">analysis</keyword>, four of them are "Dog Man" installments.</p><div type="image" title="Oscar Isaac as Moon Knight for Disney Plus" height="1333" width="2000" msid="92855109" hostid="261" sizebytes="129680"></div><h2 style="font-weight: 400;">Every comics format across every distribution channel grew last year</h2><p style="font-weight: 400;">The popularity of manga and children's books have reinforced graphic novels as the top format for comics being sold in recent years. They accounted for $1.47 billion of the $2.075 billion in sales in 2021, while single-issue <keyword id="12860973" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="comic-books" source="Orion">comic books</keyword> made up $435 million (digital comics made up the rest).</p><p style="font-weight: 400;">A graphic novel is often exactly what it sounds like — a long-form novel in comic format. But they can also be collections of single issues (also known as periodicals), which are typically more like weekly magazines and are dominated by the superhero genre made popular by Marvel an DC.</p><p style="font-weight: 400;">Periodicals attract more diehard fans and fewer casual readers than graphic novels do, LaGaccia said.</p><p style="font-weight: 400;">And graphic novels can be found in many book stores, including chains like Barnes and Noble, while single issues are primarily sold in comic shops. Most comic sales stem from book stores/online retailers for these reasons.</p><p style="font-weight: 400;">LaGaccia attributed new customers buying single issues to TV and movies, particularly from Marvel, which is regularly churning out Marvel Cinematic Universe content in theaters and on Disney+. He said he had a lot of customers seeking out Moon Knight comics after watching the Disney+ series this year.</p><p style="font-weight: 400;">Every comic format (graphic novels, single issues, and digital) and every distribution channel (book stores/online retailers, comic shops, and digital download) grew in 2021, signaling strength across the industry.</p><p style="font-weight: 400;">LaGaccia opened Action City Comics early last year. He said that people questioned why he would do so "in the middle of a pandemic." But comics have proven to be one of the industries to come out stronger than ever before.</p><p style="font-weight: 400;">"A lot of people rediscovered or discovered new hobbies during the pandemic," he said. "And also all the new shows and movies are driving people into the shop. It was a perfect storm. We get new customers every day."</p>

Comic-book sales had their best year ever in 2021 — and this year is on pace to be even better. Here's what's behind the surge, from manga to 'Dog Man.'

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="5050" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="books">Books</keyword> about racism were challenged more in 2020 than previous years, the ALA told Insider.</li><li>The organization released its list of the 10 most challenged and <keyword id="908831" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Banned-Books">banned books</keyword>.</li><li>It included a children's book about a police shooting, which caused controversy in Minneapolis. </li></ul><p>More Americans were challenging and seeking to ban books about racism and antiracism in 2020 than previous years, according to the <keyword id="466219" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="American-Library-Association">American Library Association</keyword> (ALA). </p><p>The group's 2020 Top 10 Most Challenged Books list, released this week, mirrored a growing conversation about race and racial equity in the US, Deborah Caldwell-Stone, director of the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom, told Insider.</p><p>"This year - and I think it reflects what our nation's growing concern with racial injustice and the incidents of police violence against black persons - we've seen an increase in challenges to antiracist books and books that criticized police violence," she said. </p><p>Books for children and young adults made the 2020 ALA list, including "Something Happened in Our Town: A Child's Story About Racial Injustice," written by Marianne Celano, Marietta Collins, and Ann Hazzard, and illustrated by Jennifer Zivoin.</p><p>That <a href="https://www.apa.org/pubs/magination/441B228">book</a>, which was a New York Times bestseller, detailed conversations between kids and their families after a fictional police-involved shooting of a Black man. </p><p>"Something Happened" attracted attention in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in the months before the trial of former police officer <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/chauvin-trial-stress-black-americans-how-leaders-allies-can-help-2021-4">Derek Chauvin</a> over the killing of George Floyd.</p><p>The book had been recommended by the state's Dept. of Health and the Dept. of Education. But the Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association - which Chauvin would later turn to for defense funds, according to <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/crime-justice/2021/03/police-unions-have-enormous-war-chests-to-defend-officers-like-derek-chauvin/">Mother Jones</a> - sent <a href="https://www.mppoa.com/images/MPPOA_letter_to_governor_about_elementary_book.pdf">a letter</a> to the governor in October asking for the book to be banned.</p><p>"This book encourages children to fear police officers as unfair, violent, and racist," Brian Peters, executive director, wrote in his letter.</p><p>The list included other titles that dealt directly and indirectly with race in America, including "Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You," by Ibram X. Kendi and Jason Reynolds.</p><p>In <a href="https://twitter.com/DrIbram/status/1379447424310198273?s=20">a statement</a>, Kendi said: "The heartbeat of racism is denial, and the history of 'Stamped' will not be denied, nor will young people's access to this book be cancelled." </p><p>The 2020 list also included older books that were challenged for their use of racial slurs, like <keyword id="161545" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Harper-Lee">Harper Lee</keyword>'s "To Kill a Mockingbird" and John Steinbeck's "Of Mice and Men."</p><p>The ALA logged a total of 273 books that were affected by censorship attempts last year. The most banned or challenged book in the US was again <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/banned-books-schools-libraries-2019-4">"George,"</a> by Alex Gino, marking its third year at the top of the list.</p><p>The list was released as publishers begin to publicly reckon with racist or otherwise offensive content in their backlogs.</p><p>Earlier this year, Dr. Seuss Enterprises made <keyword id="6355005" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="news">news</keyword> by announcing it would stop selling <a href="https://www.insider.com/dr-seuss-books-no-longer-published-racist-imagery-2021-3">six of the children's book author's titles</a> for racist and offensive imagery. The removal of those books sparked the opposite reaction, with many conservatives <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ted-cruz-donald-trump-jrcancel-culture-dr-seuss-week-2021-3">calling to keep them on shelves</a> rather than ban them. And Scholastic last month <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/scholastic-adventures-of-ook-and-gluk-dav-pilkey-passive-racism-2021-3">pulled a book</a> by "Captain Underpants" author Dav Pilkey for "passive racism."</p><p>The debate over "Something Happened" was ongoing in Minnesota. "The reality is, those things are out there and they're part of our lived reality," said Jason Isaacson, a state senator and teacher, in February, according to <a href="https://minnesotareformer.com/briefs/legislators-question-schools-use-of-picture-book-about-police-shootings/">The Minnesota Reformer</a>. </p><p>The ALA collects its data for banned or challenged books from news reports and submissions from around the country. Many of them come from librarians. Reports for 2021 have already begun rolling in, she said, although it's too early to tell if the 2020 trends will continue this year, Caldwell-Stone said.</p><p>"I know that last week our program officer, who handles challenges, reports and provides support to librarians and educators giving them challenges, got 10 reports in one week," she said.</p><p>Controversy about "Something Happened" was ongoing elsewhere, too. On Thursday,<a href="https://www.wowt.com/2021/04/09/papillion-la-vista-school-district-apologizes-after-offensive-book-controversy/"> WOWT 6 News</a> in Omaha, Nebraska, reported that the local school district apologized after a teacher showed "Something Happened In Our Town" to elementary school students. </p><p>"It's not a book that is representative of how we view our law enforcement," Annette Eyman, the school district's comms director, told the TV station.</p>

The American Library Association says books with antiracist messages climbed the list of most-challenged or banned titles in 2020

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image"></div></div></div></p><ul class="summary-list"><li>The "book channel" - which includes chain bookstores and online retailers - is projected to surpass comic shops as the the largest channel for comics sales this year.</li><li>There are two major reasons why this is happening: Graphic novels are growing in popularity primarily through the book channel and children's comics, which are almost exclusively in the graphic-novel format, are now more popular than superhero comics.</li><li>The comic industry has operated for decades on a "direct market" business model, which is more skilled in single-issue comics over the graphic novel format.</li><li>Experts are still hopeful for the future of comic shops, though.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/prime?module=article&amp;area=summary">Click here for more BI Prime stories</a>.</li></ul><p>Comic shops have, for decades, been the main outlet for putting a comic book into the hands of readers, but they are being surpassed.</p><p>The "book channel" - which includes chain and independent bookstores, online retailers like Amazon, and the Scholastic Book Fair - is projected to pass comic shops as the largest channel for comic sales in North America this year, industry website <a href="https://icv2.com/">ICv2</a> revealed at a post-New York Comic Con conference last week.</p><p>Milton Griepp, the ICv2 CEO, told Business Insider that this change was due to two major shifts in the industry:</p><ul><li><strong>The graphic-novel format is becoming more popular</strong>: Graphic novel print sales reached $635 million in 2018 and single-issue (or periodical) print sales were at $360 million. The gap between the two has been widening thanks largely to the book channel. Graphic-novel sales through the channel was at nearly $500 million last year, but at less than $200 million through comic shops.</li><li><strong>New types of content are becoming more popular</strong>: Children's comics, which are almost exclusively sold in the graphic-novel format, have surpassed superhero comics this year as the most popular genre, according to ICv2. "Superheroes have dominated the comics business for as long as I've been in it, but there are some amazing things happening with kids content," Griepp said at last week's conference.</li></ul><p>The chart below shows how graphic-novel sales have been increasing through the book channel but plateaued at comic shops.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image"></div></div></div></p><p>So why aren't people buying children's content and graphic novels at comic shops?</p><p>The comic industry has operated since the early 1970s on a "direct market" model, in which a distributor (the main one being Diamond Comic Distributors) sells comics to comic shops on a non-returnable basis. It makes pre-orders essential to the business.</p><p>Periodical comics and children's graphic novels are distributed through a vastly different business model and comic shops struggle to balance the two.</p><p>"Comic shops have been slow to expand into kids graphic novels," Griepp told Business Insider. "Comic stores and the distribution system are focused on periodical releases but are less skilled on the book side."</p><p>More comic stores are experimenting, though, and buying from the book channel through publishers like Penguin Random House and Simon and Schuster, according to Griepp. But a big problem is that parents don't shop at comic stores. They're already in book stores and online and comic shops have been slow to catch up. </p><p>Furthermore, tastes have just generally been shifting away from the periodical comic format that comic shops specialize in to graphic novels, where readers get a complete story, according to Griepp. He called it "binge consumption."</p><h2>The streaming era is impacting the comic industry, too</h2><p>David Steinberger, the CEO of Amazon's digital comics service Comixology, said at last week's conference that consumers are moving toward the binge model generally because it's "inexpensive, convenient, and there's a lot of content."</p><p>"I think that's kind of where we're headed [with comics]," he said.</p><p>But Steinberger isn't ruling out periodicals just yet, he said. And he contended Comixology could attract new readers. Since Amazon acquired the service in 2014, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amazons-comixology-could-revitalize-comic-books-creators-say-2018-11">Comixology has launched an Unlimited subscription program</a> and Comixology Originals, which are exclusive to the service.</p><p>Steinberger said he thinks growth in the digital-comic space will help retailers in the print business.</p><p>"Retailers were very frightened of us at first," Steinberger said at the conference. "But many of them now say, 'I had someone come in and buy the first 10 volumes of "The Walking Dead" after first trying it on digital.' So they have started to calm down and relax about that. I don't think we've destroyed anything. What we have done is give more opportunities for both established players and new players to come in and reach audiences."</p><h2>The future of comic shops</h2><p>Since children's comics are growing in popularity, Griepp is hopeful that a new generation of fans will emerge that could potentially move into comic shops and read more superhero comics. At 5 million copies for its most recent volume, Dav Pilkey's "Dog Man" is the most-circulated graphic novel ever, according to Griepp.</p><p>"There's a whole cohort of young readers that are being introduced to this medium and may graduate to other forms of content in the comic format over the course of their lifespans," he said at the conference.</p><p>But he firmly believes that "content is king."</p><p>"In the past, lags have always been content driven," he told Business Insider. "Superheroes are soft right now, but all it takes is one hit to turn that around. All it takes is one title to catch on and we'll be talking about comic stores growing again."</p><p>But the types of content and platforms might not be enough. Gerry Conway, the creator of such comic characters as The Punisher, told Business Insider earlier this year that <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/gerry-conway-on-comics-marvel-cinematic-universe-netflixs-punisher-2019-4">the comic industry's business model is "totally unsustainable."</a></p><p>"There's going to have to be something that happens that's comparable to what happened in the '70s with the direct-sale market," Conway said. "That resulted in a redefinition of the distribution methodology and the market that you're aiming the books at. Both of those changes came hand-in-hand and resulted in a dramatic difference."</p>

Two major changes happening in comic books could shape the industry's future -&#160;and comic shops will have to adapt to survive

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container float_right" style="width:400px"><div class="image"><p class="source">Scholastic</p></div><p></p></div>The children's series <a href="http://www.amazon.com/New-Captain-Underpants-Collection-Books/dp/0439417848">"Captain Underpants"</a> has surprisingly <a href="http://www.ala.org/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks/top10">topped the list of the most banned books in America</a> in 2012, beating out the much more controversial title "Fifty Shades of Grey."</p>
<p>The 10-part series, <span>by author Dav Pilkey,</span> follows two prank-loving young boys who create a superhero called Captain Underpants.</p>
<p>Parents say in complaints filed to the Office for Intellectual Freedom that the illustrated <keyword id="5050" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="books">books</keyword> contain "offensive language" that is unsuited to the series' target age group of elementary-school children.</p>
<p>The first book in the series even comes with a "Sturgeon General's Warning" that says: "Some material in this book may be considered offensive by people who don't wear underwear."</p>
<p>So where's the evidence that the books are actually a bad influence on children?</p>
<p>We've broken down the most "offensive" parts of the first "Captain Underpants" book in an attempt to understand why the series is the most <keyword id="43927" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="60" keywordseo="banned">banned</keyword> in the country.</p>
<h3>"Offensive Language"</h3>
<p>In Chapter 4, the two protagonists of the series - George Beard and Harold Hutchins - refer to their school principal as "that old guy" and call him "Mean Old Mr. Krupp."</p>
<p>Throughout the book, there is reference to undergarments.</p>
<h3>Partial Nudity</h3>
<p>The hero of the series, Captain Underpants, flies around in underwear and a cape throughout the illustrated book.</p>
<p>In Chapter 17, Captain Underpants slings his underwear at the evil Dr. Diaper in an attempt to defeat him and then covers himself with a barrel. (Note: there is no actual nudity in the book, unless you count Captain Underpants' chest.)</p>
<h3>Violence</h3>
<p>In Chapter 16 - titled "The Extremely Graphic Violence Chapter" - George and Harold save each other from evil robots by whacking (and presumably killing) them with what appear to be wooden planks.</p>
<p>The chapter comes with the following disclaimer: "WARNING: The following chapter contains graphic scenes showing two boys beating the tar out of a couple of robots. If you have high blood pressure, or if you faint at the sight of motor oil, we strongly urge you to take better care of yourself and stop being such a baby."</p>
<h3>Misbehavior</h3>
<p>The book is riddled with examples of George and Harold misbehaving. They play several pranks at school, including sprinkling pepper in the cheerleaders' pom-poms and putting bubble bath in the marching band's instruments.</p>
<h3>Blackmail/Threats</h3>
<p>The principal, who is later hypnotized by George and Harold into becoming Captain Underpants, blackmails the two mischievous students into behaving well at school and doing chores for him by threatening to release a tape of them pranking the football team.</p>
<p>This could be construed as bullying.</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"> ***</p>
<p>But what's even more shocking to us than the contents of the Captain Underpants series is why parents are so opposed to a book that <a href="http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/family/2012/09/dav_pilkey_s_captain_underpants_books_why_kids_love_them_and_parents_should_make_peace_with_them_.html">gets young boys excited about reading</a>.</p>

You Searched For "Dav Pilkey" and got 5 results

Scholastic has pulled a book by 'Captain Underpants' author Dav Pilkey over its 'passive racism' and racial stereotypes

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Comic-book sales had their best year ever in 2021 — and this year is on pace to be even better. Here's what's behind the surge, from manga to 'Dog Man.'

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The American Library Association says books with antiracist messages climbed the list of most-challenged or banned titles in 2020

Kevin Shalvey

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Here's What Parents Hate About 'Captain Underpants,' The Most Banned Book In America

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You Searched For "Dav Pilkey" and got 5 results

Scholastic has pulled a book by 'Captain Underpants' author Dav Pilkey over its 'passive racism' and racial stereotypes

Kevin Shalvey

Comic-book sales had their best year ever in 2021 — and this year is on pace to be even better. Here's what's behind the surge, from manga to 'Dog Man.'

Travis Clark

The American Library Association says books with antiracist messages climbed the list of most-challenged or banned titles in 2020

Kevin Shalvey

Two major changes happening in comic books could shape the industry's future -&#160;and comic shops will have to adapt to survive

Travis Clark

Here's What Parents Hate About 'Captain Underpants,' The Most Banned Book In America

Pamela Engel

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Two major changes happening in comic books could shape the industry's future - and comic shops will have to adapt to survive