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    In the battle over books, who gets to decide what's age-appropriate at libraries?

    There are efforts to change how decisions are made about which books libraries should stock and which section they belong in. Some advocate using a national rating system like the one used for movies.
    by Tovia Smith Nov 28, 2023 5 minutes
    Parents Against Bad Books co-founder Carolyn Harrison (center) talks with people last month outside the public library in Idaho Falls, Idaho, about what she considers obscene books on the shelves.

    For months, Carolyn Harrison and a small band of activists have been setting up folding tables with an array of what they call "bad books" outside the public library in Idaho Falls, Idaho. As Harrison, co-founder of the group Parents Against Bad Books sees it, the best way to convince people that the library is stocking inappropriate books is to show them.

    "These two books are in the library, if you don't believe it!" Harrison says to one passerby.

    "It's very graphic, very detailed," offers Halli Stone, another member of the group.

    They point out depictions of what they call obscene sexual encounters, catching many library patrons by surprise.

    "Oooh, the graphic pictures!" exclaims one woman. "They're taking away children's innocence. They just don't care."

    "No, they don't," Harrison replies.

    Another mom, Natasha Stringam, recalls how her 12-year-old son recently came across a book "about a boy kissing

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