The View’s Joy Behar will read a banned children’s book every week

Joy Behar’s latest stunt will see her read a banned children’s book on The View every week, despite the show’s target audience being middle-aged women.

Behar, 80, will begin the segment next week with And Tango Makes Three, based on the true story of a same-sex male penguin couple who adopted a chick at New York’s Central Park Zoo.

‘Joy’s Banned Book Club’ will see the host take aim at the sweeping book bans that have hit American schools in recent months, mostly in conservative states.

But it’s unclear whether fans of The View will enjoy having to read a children’s book, since the show is aimed squarely at adult women, rather than young men.

The View presenter chose the 2005 book ‘And Tango Makes Three’ as her first read. It tells the true story of a gay penguin couple living at the Central Park Zoo who adopted a baby chick.

Behar, who recently made actor Liam Neeson squirm on The View by sharing her lust for him, said: “This is not some kinky Shades of Gray for penguins.”

“It’s a sweet and elegant way to introduce children to the concept of acceptance of same-sex relationships and non-traditional families.”

Announcing her new segment, Behar said her readings are a form of protest against the more than 2,500 books that have been banned across the country.

More than 5,000 schools across the United States banned books last year, Behar said, including “some of the best books ever written” like “To Kill a Mockingbird,” “Of Mice and Men” and “Catcher in the Rye.” .

“A person can decide that they don’t want to read a book,” he continued.

‘A person can decide that they don’t want their child to read a book. But one person cannot decide that a whole school or town cannot read a book.

“As for And Tango Makes Three, our studio audience can decide for themselves because everyone will get a copy.”

Escambia County in Florida banned And Tango Makes Three after deciding that the portrayal of a same-sex penguin couple was not suitable for children.

Florida public school officials are currently reviewing thousands of books for content deemed controversial by Ron DeSantis.

The book won multiple awards upon its publication in 2005 and was quickly heralded as an instant classic.

Book bans most often target novels written for older children or young adults.

One of the most notorious is Gender Queer, a graphic novel that depicts a transgender teen giving oral sex lessons using a strap-on penis.

Some supporters of the book prohibit the removal of Gender Queer and other highly explicit books from libraries, while opposing other removals.

Books widely considered classics, including To Kill A Mockingbird and Toni Morrison’s Beloved, have also broken the bans, leading some conservatives to say the rules have gone too far.

Officials were following the lead of Gov. Ron DeSantis, who vowed to crack down on “woke” literature in schools.

Last month, the potential candidate for 2024 went ahead with his initiative, putting thousands of books on the chopping block.

Thousands of books are now under review after DeSantis deemed them controversial.

Officials say more than 100 titles, including picture books like The Berenstain Bears and biographies of black and Hispanic historical figures, have already been retired in parts of the state.

The books are under review based on various state laws that restrict classroom topics revolving around race, gender, and sexual orientation.

Laws that could spell the end of books in the classroom include DeSantis’s Stop WOKE Act and the Parents’ Rights in Education Act, dubbed the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill by detractors.