The Seven-Letter S Word

Novel of the week: The Higher Power of Lucky, by Susan Patron, 2007 Newbery Medal Winner

This brief and satisfying novel is about a ten year-old girl named Lucky, age 10, who lives in Hard Pan, California, population 43. Lucky has an absent father, and when Lucky's mother died two years ago, Brigitte entered Lucky's life. Brigitte came all the way from France on the spur of the moment to care for Lucky. Lucky has a part-time job cleaning up after 12-step meetings, at which she has heard attendees talk about finding one's Higher Power. Lucky is in pursuit of her own Higher Power when she observes Brigitte's moments of homesickness. Lucky fears that Brigitte will soon give up being Lucky's guardian and return home to France, leaving Lucky to fend for herself in an orphanage. The only solution is for Lucky to run away.

Now that I have read this book, I am ready to weigh in on the controversy that accompanied its publication--the use of the word scrotum, when a dog is bitten in the scrotum by a rattlesnake. I am shocked--shocked that anyone would find this scandalous, since it was handled with perfect decorum.

The opponents of the s word said it was gratuitous, reasoning that Patron could just as easily have had the dog bitten elsewhere, avoiding this private anatomy in a story for young children. My argument in favor of using it is that young boys aren't avoiding referring to this rather private anatomy themselves in everyday conversation. Children age 7 or 8, the audience of this book, hear the scrotum referred to frequently, as a place to be kicked in. This crass usage should not block the possibility of usage in polite and appropriate contexts. On the contrary, referring to it within the bounds of good manners helps counteract the rudeness associated with the other context.

I really enjoyed the insights into Lucky's thought processes, including those prompted by the s word. Thumbs up.