EDMONTON, AB
The Edmonton book ban is turning heads this week after one glaringly obvious omission – Rudy Wiebe’s Peace Shall Destroy Many.
“That book’s been banned in more or less every other community where Mennonites exist, so I don’t know why they missed it here,” said outraged reader Karen Kehler. “I certainly wouldn’t want the word to get out that we allow people to read Peace Shall Destroy Many here. Who knows what kind of riffraff we’d attract.”
The outrage is heightened by the fact that the list fails to include any local authors.
“And who is more prominent among Edmonton literati than 2-time Governor General Award winner Rudy Wiebe?” said Kehler. “The least we can do is show him the respect of banning his books.”
Friend and fellow literary icon Margaret Atwood echoed these sentiments.
“I’ve never known of a Rudy Wiebe book that didn’t at least ruffle some feathers in the Mennonite community,” said Atwood. “If The Handmaid’s Tale is on the list, then surely Peace Shall Destroy Many should be there right beside it.”
A petition had been going around to ban Rudy Wiebe’s books in Edmonton, although so far only the MB church library has agreed to the request.