Is a high school supposed to provide stimuli for critical thinking or is it supposed to protect its students from thought that someone feels is unsuitable? A fundamental way society passes its values on to the next generation is through books and schools.

What goes on in the schools is of vital importance. Some people want complete freedom while others want limitations for a variety of reasons. The Day They Came to Arrest the Book deals with the furor that can arise when controversial material is used in a school. It is a problem that never is resolved to everyone's satisfaction; however, students can learn to think for themselves and make up their own minds.

Hentoff's book brings up a variety of societal problems and biases—racial difficulties, feminist concerns, sexual preference, school prayer, and school administration problems. In dealing with these, the author has...