More Banned Books Week Fun

The weather was great so the kids decided to take their daily reading outside. And since it's Banned Books Week they brought out some of their favorite banned books!

Corbin loves Maurice Sendak books but In The Night Kitchen is his favorite. Like Judy Blume, many of Maurice Sendak's books are challenged, censored, or outright banned. When In the Night Kitchen was published some adults (including librarians) objected to the parts of Mickey's dream where he is in the nude. Some librarians and teachers went so far as to draw diapers onto Mickey. (source: Letters of Note and CBLDF)

Dr. Seuss is a big part of our home library and one of our favorites is The Lorax! It may seem odd that a book encouraging children to be responsible for the environment could be challenged or banned but it happened. Members of the logging industry completely missed the book's message that we should take care and not waste our natural resources and instead believed that The Lorax was vilifying the forest industry. The forest industry even came up with their own version called Truax.  (source: Time.com)

Of course we can't forget about Harry Potter! Nora loves her Harry Potter specs and wears them everywhere. When she finally does need glasses I won't be surprised if she picks round frames. As is well known Harry Potter has been a lightening rod for controversy. The most common complaints were from American religious groups who felt the books encouraged witchcraft and paganism, and encouraged children to abandon Christianity. **Excuse me while I roll my eyes.**
(source: Banned Books Awareness)

Banned Book Week

Banned Book Week is well under way! I love seeing all the different ways libraries, book stores, schools, bloggers, etc... have used this week to celebrate the freedom to read. The displays and activities across the US have been truly inspiring but I have to admit one of my favorite parts about this week are the Banned Books Trading Cards from the Lawrence Public Library.

Artist: Eleanor Matheis.
Courtesy of the Lawrence Public Library   

Since 2012 the Lawrence Public Library has been asking artists to submit artwork featuring their favorite banned or challenged book. Out of the many wonderful and creative submissions they (somehow) narrow it down to 7 pieces, which are then printed and distributed daily during Banned Book Week. Unfortunately I don't live in Kansas - but that's okay because you can purchase the 2013 and 2014 cards and have it delivered to your home.

You can see the card of the day on the Lawrence Public Library Facebook page. Also check out some of the other ways Lawrence is celebrating BBW.

Banned Books Week

Photo courtesy of ASJA

Banned Books Week is coming up in a few days! It is probably one of my favorite book themed week on the calender because it draws attention to books that have been deemed to be controversial. I also like to laugh about some of the reasons certain books make it on the list (Captain Underpants?!). While I do not condone banning books -- becoming a banned book kind of gives the book some street cred and instead of discouraging people from reading them, it encourages readers to seek these books out.

So in honor of Banned Books Week here is the American Library Association's Top Ten Most Challenged Books from 2013:

Captain Underpants (series) by Dav Pilkey
Reasons: Offensive language, unsuited for age group, violence

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
Reasons: Offensive language, sexually explicit, unsuited to age group, violence

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
Reasons: Drugs/alcohol/smoking, offensive language, racism, sexually explicit, unsuited to age group

Fifty Shades of Grey by EL James
Reasons: Nudity, offensive language, religious viewpoint, sexually explicit, unsuited to age group

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Reasons: Religious viewpoint, unsuited to age group

A Bad Boy Can Be Good for a Girl by Tanya Lee Stone
Reasons: Drugs/alcohol/smoking, nudity, offensive language, sexually explicit

Looking for Alaska by John Green
Reasons: Drugs/alcohol/smoking, sexually explicit, unsuited to age group

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
Reasons: drugs/alcohol/smoking, homosexuality, sexually explicit, unsuited to age group

Bless Me Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya
Reasons: Occult/Satanism, offensive language, religious viewpoint, sexually explicit

Bone (series) by Jeff Smith
Reasons: Political viewpoint, racism, violence



In the comments section feel free to tell me: What are your favorite banned books? Has your school or library banned a book? How do you feel about the subject? 

I'm pretty angry about this decision (read the full article here). The school board took the coward's out because they couldn't take a stand and do the right thing. Actually I'm so angry right now I can't come up with an intelligent and well written response, so I will leave that for later when my brain stops flashing "idiots!" If you haven't heard about this case of overprotective parents over-reacting, you can read the previous article here.

What about the book that started it all? Well read what author Emily Danforth had to say to Cape Henlopen when her book "The Miseducation of Cameron Post" was removed from the high school reading list.