Last month, we reported on an effort to ban John Steinbeck’s novella Of Mice and Men from the high school curriculum in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, where at least one mom objected to the book’s liberal use of profanities like “God damn” and “bastard,” and criticized its literary merits: local parent Mary Jo Finney said it’s “neither a quality story nor a page-turner.” She and others felt the novella was too “negative” and “dark” to be appropriate for teenagers.

On Monday, the school board voted 4 to 1 to keep the book as part of the ninth-grade curriculum, the Los Angeles Times reports. Trustee Tom Hearn said, “We need to trust the judgment of our English teachers to use this book wisely.” Another trustee, Dave Eubanks, told The Spokesman-Review, “I think our community has already clearly made its decision: no problem, leave it where it is.”

It seems common sense has prevailed. Still, Mary Jo Finney, who initiated the petition to ban the book, now recommends “parents pull their children from [School District] 271, or better yet, never put them in.”

She also claims to be the target of harassment due to her protest: “At this point, I have to be cautious answering my phone, opening my front door, and I receive emails from strangers,” she said. “This is bullying mentality at its highest level. It is shocking that there is such outrage because a person is outspokenly conservative, yet not aghast when students are to read or watch profanity, vulgarity or explicit content on our tax dollars.”

Our earlier coverage of this story can be found here.