Students at Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board schools who want to borrow the award-winning novel Snow Falling on Cedars from their school libraries will have to wait at least until the novel has been reviewed by a committee because the board received a complaint from a parent.

"It's an unusual situation," said board spokesman Bruce Campbell. "The committee being convened will be sitting in the next few weeks to review the issue."

According to Mr. Campbell, the novel written by David Gutterson in 1995 was part of only one Grade 11 English class at a school in Mississauga, but since the complaint all copies of the book have been pulled from all the libraries in the board's schools until it is determined by the committee whether the novel is appropriate for Grade 11 students.

It is expected that the committee will consist of two trustees, one parent, one religious and family life representative, one library technician and one superintendent. Mr. Campbell said committee had to be determined without notice.

"This situation determines a fast resolution," he said. "Currently there are no books banned by the board."

Depending on the outcome and decision of the committee, the novel will either be recirculated to the libraries or remain off the shelves.

"In discussions with one trustee with 16 years' experience on the board, they couldn't remember another situation like this about a novel," said Mr. Campbell. "But when a complaint is received, we have to ensure the content is appropriate, based on Catholic values."

According to an article in the Toronto Star, the complaint concerned several sexual encounters described in the novel.

The novel was made into a movie in 1999. The story deals with the death of a fisherman found in the waters of Washington State, presumed to have been murdered in the 1950s. Acountry still dealing with postwar anti-Japanese sentiments forms an undertone for a Japanese fisher to be accused of the murder.

Mr. Campbell says the book's entire content will be discussed by the school board when it convenes to determine its appropriateness for students.

The novel, which won the PEN/Faulkner award and the American Booksellers Association book of the year award, contains some explicit passages, including a detailed description of a married couple's first sexual encounter, as well as sexual relations between two youths.