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At another review site, Dear Author, writers registered complaints about the marketing of the book, from the use of the word "Jewess" to the cover art, which includes a photograph of actual Jews on their way to Auschwitz.READ: The British Soldier Who Killed Nazis with a Sword and a Longbow
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The book's publisher refused to comment for this article, but an earlier statement said that "Bethany House Publishers has been very saddened to learn of the offense some have taken at" the novel. "We deeply respect and honor the Jewish faith, and this novel, inspired by the events and redemptive theme of the biblical book of Esther, was intended to draw on our common faith heritage." He went on: "We have heard from many readers who have been moved by this honest portrayal of courage during a time of terrible evil, and we hope it continues to inspire and remind us to never forget the tragedy of the Holocaust."RWA for its part released a statement justifying its award process by suggesting that what Wendell and others were asking for amounted to censorship. "If a book is banned from the contest because of its content, there will be a move for more content to be banned," the statement asserts. "This is true, even especially true, when a book addresses subjects that are difficult, complex, or offensive."Others agreed, even seeing in the attacks on the book evidence of "a new era of censorship in the name of political correctness," as author Anne Rice put it on her Facebook page. "We must stand up for fiction as a place where transgressive behavior and ideas can be explored," she went on. "We must stand up for freedom in the arts. I think we have to be willing to stand up for the despised. It is always a matter of personal choice whether one buys or reads a book. No one can make you do it. But internet campaigns to destroy authors accused of inappropriate subject matter or attitudes are dangerous to us all." In a later post, since taken down, she specifically mentioned Breslin's book as the target of "an internet lynch mob.""Yiddish literature had a word for bad art—it was called schund—and that's really the question here." –Joseph Skibell
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