Prince & Knight

Prince & Knight has received positive industry reviews since its release. Kirkus Reviews gave it a starred review, calling it "victorious" and the "premier queer-friendly fairy tale for this age set."[21] The School Library Journal said, "This is an illuminating fairy tale for young readers...A great addition to any library or classroom."[23] Similarly, the Chicago Tribune wrote that "newcomer Daniel Haack has penned a much-needed LGBT fairy tale [that] hits just the right notes; it’s at once matter-of-fact and alive to the magic of true love."[24] Bookish noted that "Haack has written a beautifully inclusive fairy tale made all the more special by Stevie Lewis’s magical illustrations."[25]

Prince & Knight was named to the American Library Association's 2019 Rainbow List Top Ten.[26] It was also a Goodreads Choice Award nominee for Best Picture Book and was named a best children's book of 2018 by Amazon,[27] the Chicago Tribune,[28] Kirkus Reviews,[29] and PopSugar.[30]

According to the American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, Prince & Knight was the fifth most challenged book of 2019.[31]

Deborah Caldwell Stone, executive director of the Office for Intellectual Freedom, says, “Our concern [as an organization] is the fact that many of the books are age-appropriate and developmentally appropriate books intended for young people” but are challenged because “they allegedly advance a political agenda or sexualize children.”[32] According to findings from the ALA, the challenges came from parents, legislators, and religious leaders.[31][32]

The Upshur County Public Library in West Virginia removed Prince & Knight from its shelves after Josh Layfield, a Calvary Chapel Mountain Highlands pastor,[33] met with library officials to voice his opposition to the book.[32]

In a since-deleted Facebook post, Layfield said:

“This book is a deliberate attempt to indoctrinate young children, especially boys, into the LGBTQA lifestyle. This book is deliberately appealing to their imagination, creativity, and their innocence… Children’s books, which are promoted by the state and put into circulation by taxpayer funds, should remain innocent. Unfortunately, this is an intentional leading of children into sin.”[34]

Layfield’s comments and the decision to pull the book from library shelves prompted responses from local and national LGBTQ+ and censorship advocates.[33][34] Sarah Kate Ellis, GLAAD President and CEO, said in a statement:

“The decision to remove Prince & Knight from the shelves of the Upshur County Public Library is an act of discrimination, plain and simple,” and “inclusive children’s books do not ‘indoctrinate’ but do allow LGBTQ families and their children the chance to see themselves reflected in the world.”[33]

Additionally, the National Coalition Against Censorship, the American Library Association Office for Intellectual Freedom, and West Virginia Library Association have all urged Upshur County to return the book to circulation.[33] In a letter to board members, the WVLA stated:

“One parent’s — or community member’s — belief that a book is inappropriate for their family should not be grounds for restricting that title when the book may be a treasured favorite for other children and families.”[33]

According to the New York Times and the ALA’s field report, Prince & Knight “was temporarily removed from the library, but later returned.”[32][31]

In Loudon County, Virginia, the local school district faced several challenges to pieces of literature that were instated as a component of a “diverse classroom libraries” initiative for elementary and high school classrooms.[35] Most challenges centered on the LGBTQ+ pieces of literature, despite constituting only five percent of designated texts for the program.[35] Specifically, Heather has Two Mommies, My Princess Boy, and Prince & Knight received the most requests for reconsideration by parents and citizens, according to internal district documents, with Prince & Knight having been moved to the school counseling office while under reconsideration.[36]

Both those opposed and in support of the inclusion of the LGBTQ+ texts in the diversity initiative voiced their positions during a lengthy six-hour board of education meeting to discuss the controversy.[37] Byron Cross, a physical education teacher in the district, said that all books that “could potentially confuse a child of who they are biologically [should be removed].”[35] Another parent in attendance stated during the public comment, “I cannot stomach reading written porn, but my child can?”[35]

The increase in media attention that resulted as the growing controversy grew prompted intervention by the National Coalition Against Censorship, who argued in an op-ed for the local newspaper:

“All parents have the right to influence their own child’s education. Equally true: No parent has the right to dictate the education of all children based on their own personal beliefs.”[37]