Banned Book Week

Ok guys, don't hate me. I kind of slacked a little bit this week on featuring a banned book a day. Part of the reason was because I got a bit behind but also because I had a very hard time picking which books I wanted to feature. Now that Banned Books Week is drawing to a close, I decided I would just go ahead and list a few more of my favorites.

1. To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Harper Lee's only published novel and an Alabama native. This year Monroeville, AL, where Lee still lives, celebrated the 50th anniversary of To Kill a Mockingbird.

2. A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein

One of my favorites. Especially the poem Crowded Tub. I can STILL recite this one from memory.

3. The Jessica Darling Series by Megan McCafferty

 MarcusFlutieMarcusFlutieMarcusFlutie! Marcus Flutie wearing Backstreet Boys t-shirts. LASSODICKING!

4. Looking for Alaska by John Green

 Another Alabama author and it was SO weird reading about places I know/see/drive ALL the time.

5. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

Dystopian that focuses on sleep-learning and reproduction. Read this in my College World Lit class and was so much fun to discuss.

What are some of your favorite banned books?

Banned Books Week Discussion

We all have our favorite banned books and as writers, readers, bloggers, agents, publishers and anyone else who has a hand in anything book related, we have strong feelings regarding book banning.

The two most publicized cases of the last few weeks have been surrounding two amazing authors: Ellen Hopkins and Laurie Halse Anderson.

Ellen Hopkins had been invited and uninvited to TeenLitFest in Humble, TX after a librarian (of all people) decided she didn't think it was appropriate for Ellen to speak to her students based on the content of her books. After Hopkins was uninvited, some of the other authors pulled out in support of her (Kudos to them!) and although the festival has been canceled, I am so happy to see these authors standing up against censorship.

As for Laurie Halse Anderson, Wesley Scroggins stated that Laurie's book Speak should be considered soft pornography due to the scenes of rape. I won't get started on that again.

I don't think there could be a better time for these things to happen than around Banned Book Week. We're already trying to get the word out about why books shouldn't be banned and here are two perfectly good examples of fantastic books that are being challenged that should be left alone.

The most important thing about books like these is that it reaches out to people who may be going through the same thing and are looking for comfort or strength. Maybe they aren't even looking for anything but get an epiphany about themselves and their lives once they read it. I was reading an article earlier about this from Ellen Hopkins and think it's definitely worth sharing. Her manifesto, which is found at the bottom, is pretty awesome too. Click here to read it.

You know what the saying is though, no press is bad press. Both of these authors have been on my radar for quite sometime, I just have not gotten around to their books yet. The funny thing? All this drama has made me want to read them even more than I already did. So here's my question to you:

Do you think the act of banning makes books more or less desirable to readers? Do you think school systems that ban a specific books have more students seeking out that particular book in their free time?

Anything else about Banned Books Week you'd like to add or discuss? Feel free to leave it in the comments section, I'd love to hear what you have to say!

Banned Books Week - Harry Potter Series

Oh, Harry Potter. You've been through some majorly rough times. That's not even including all the challenges you faced while attending Hogwarts. You've been banned for promoting witchcraft and wizardry by people who were never going to give you a snowball's chance.

We've heard the protests against all of the Harry Potter books because it has to be one of the more prominent banned books in recent years. Therefore, this is going to be my OMG, I LOVE HARRY POTTER entry.

Why YES, I LOVE Harry Potter! My love affair with Harry, Ron, and Hermione has been relatively short (I only started reading the series in 2008) but that doesn't mean it hasn't been meaningful. You see, I put off reading Harry Potter because the genre wasn't really my thing. Sure, there were plenty of people urging me to read them because of the fantastic story and writing but I kept with my decision not to read them.

My longest online bestie (Allie..11 years!) and I made a deal. She would read Twilight while I read Harry Potter (not an even trade but be it as it may) and when I told my friend and Wildlife classmate about it, she was all about letting me borrow her books. For the next couple of months she would bring me one book at a time and we'd swap before class, discuss it after class and on our breaks between classes. Needless to say, I became hooked. The storyline is just so intricate and re-reading the series is a must. The writing is magical and I would love to be J.K. Rowling when I grow up.

Beginning the series was an experience I never expected to have just as I never expected to fall in love with it as much as I did. Now I have a Harry Potter collection that includes the hardback boxed set, t-shirts, a stuffed Hedwig, 2 movie posters and numerous other items. I have also been to Harry Potter: The Exhibition and the real happiest place on Earth, the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. How can you want to ban books that have their own little theme park?! Crazy. 

 

So thank you Allie for humoring me and making a deal and thank you friend for lending me your books. Only 50 days left until  part 1 of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows hits theaters (and also the Weasley Wedding Party Party Anna and I are going to!)

I leave you with a picture of Hogwarts from my vacation.

OH! Check this out, Emma, Daniel, and Rupert took part in ALA's Celebrity READ project. You can view and order the posters here if you'd like.

Banned Book Week - The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Next on my Banned Books Week list is Stephen Chbosky's The Perks of Being a Wallflower.

This book was listed on the American Library Association's top 10 most frequently challenged books of 2006 (and other years) and has been challenged for several reasons. Most notably are for homosexuality, sexually explicit content, and for inappropriate content for age group.

So yeah, I can see where parents might see the 4th grade reading level as inappropriate and slightly too mature for their eight year olds, but that doesn't mean teachers are using it in the classroom.

As for the complaints of homosexuality, was this really part of the reason it was challenged? In 2006?! I really thought our country had come farther than that. I honestly just don't know what to say about this. Growing up, I was taught not to judge others and if they weren't hurting anyone, it shouldn't matter how people live their own lives. Call me naive or say I lived in some little bubble, but I thought homosexuality wasn't as big an issue in 2006 as it was in previous years. Maybe I thought this because I've been around people that had this lifestyle choice since I was in jr. high/high school.

Sexually explicit content seems to be a big one when banning is involved and it just doesn't seem like it should be as big of an issue. People are getting up in arms over the fact that they don't think young people have the same thoughts, feelings, and urges they did when they were younger. It's not like sexuality dies off with one generation. To think that teens don't curse, masturbate, or force themselves on others (yes, we live in a world where this unfortunately does happen), is lacking logic.

I remember when I first read The Perks of Being a Wallflower. I was at work one day and one of my co-workers gave me her extra copy because she was really loving this book. I read it and I must admit, I wasn't expecting some of the stuff that was in there. When I was growing up, MG/YA books consisted of Sweet Valley (kids, twins, high, college, etc), The Babysitters Club, and R.L. Stine so reading something like Perks was completely different for me. It was refreshing to read something that seemed real. Things real teenagers would think, see, and do. How can you NOT like a book where they dress up and act out parts to The Rocky Horror Picture Show?

I may have only read this book once (and I'm definitely long overdue for a re-read) but The Perks of Being a Wallflower remains on my top 10 list of most memorable books read.

Banned Book Week - The Outsiders

One of my all-time favorite books is, hands down, The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton. It all started when I was in the 6th grade and a classmate had just discovered this book and told me that I just HAD to read it. She later lent me her copy to read and the rest is history. The Outsiders was the first non-kids book I ever re-read and to this day, I still go back to it. Sure, it has been at least six or seven years since I last read it, but this book had a lasting impression on me.

I love this book so much because it's a story that still speaks to its target audience. There's a character for everyone to identify with, whether it be through their personality, home life, love of sunsets, or social status.

The Outsiders has been challenged numerous times (it was #43 on the list of 100 most frequently challenged books from 1990-2000) since it was published in 1967 due to the use of profane language, violence, alcohol & tobacco use, and for depicting a less than perfect (and unconventional) family. People are really challenging it for these reasons? Sometimes you have to wonder if people are actually aware of what is going on around them.When I was in high school these things were a part of every day life for some. Trying to pretend it isn't reality is just plain dumb.

I really think this is where people go wrong, they (they usually being officials, parents, whomever) challenge and try to ban books because they don't agree with the topic or what characters are doing because they're worried the young minds will become corrupted, but it should be the opposite. Saying things are bad and that they shouldn't do something (drinking, smoking, cursing, etc) is fine so long as you talk about the reasons why you think it's wrong. Instead of challenging and banning books, why not be an adult and use them as tools and openly discuss the issues you have a problem with.

Kids and teens are highly underestimated when it comes to what you think they know. To think they must remain naive until you deem them old enough to know the "ways of the world" is naive in and of itself.

Banned Book Week - Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl

Most of us have either heard of or read Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl at one point in our lives. Did you know that places in Virginia and Texas challenged it because of it's graphic, pornographic nature? To the students in Texas who fought for this book, I give you a "job well done." The Alabama State Text Book Committee also asked to remove it because of it's depressing content.

The reason Anne Frank's Diary was banned was because of it's sexual offensiveness but because it is considered to be a downer. Seriously people? Life is full of ups and downs, and this was one of the world's biggest downs. Just because you don't talk about it doesn't mean it's going to go away.

What kind of world do you live in where you have to ban something that was written during one of the biggest and most atrocious events in history just because you don't think a young girl's sexuality is appropriate for a specific audience? Don't you think that the lessons learned and keeping the memory of all those lost souls is more important that feeling sad over a book?

As far as the "sexually explicit passages" go, what person Anne's age doesn't think about those same exact things? You wouldn't have a problem with it if it were coming from an older person, would you? Most likely not. I wonder if the people who wanted this book banned know that teenagers have the same feelings and questions they once had. Sexuality is a part of life, just as it always has been and for parents to think otherwise is just plain silly. The sexual nature of this book is NOTHING compared to what is shown on any given television show, so get over it and leave this book alone.

Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl should definitely not be banned anywhere. The story Anne tells is so much more than what these people are focusing on and it's a shame that any actions that lead to taking this book away from students was even allowed.

Banned Book Week - Day 1

In honor of Banned Book Week, I'm going to be featuring seven of my favorite banned books (starting tomorrow) as well as hosting a discussion on the affect banning has, whether it be good or bad. 

I wanted to take today to post about this whole Wesley Scroggins thing. If you haven't heard the whole story you can read about it here. In short, Scroggins, stated that Laurie Halse Anderson's Speak should be classified as soft porn because of its filthy and demeaning nature. Scroggins also claims that the school board and administration should know better than to let Speak, along with Twenty Boy Summer, and Slaughterhouse Five, be a part of the curriculum because they're Christians and are exposing their children to immorality by doing so. Being a Christian is about helping people and witnessing to them not about judging and putting people down. Get over yourself. I mean, there are people out there that might say you're being immoral by reading the Bible because it's not all puppy dogs and unicorns farting rainbows.

 

I, along with the rest of the book community, am enraged over this. How in the world does one view RAPE as soft porn? A sadistic moron if you ask me.

I personally have not yet read Speak, although it has been on my radar for quite some time (I DID buy two copies today though). I have seen the movie and I think having something like Speak available to teens is a good thing. Yes, the content can be disturbing at times but let's face it, it's based off real experiences.

What if Speak's main character, Melinda, had read a book with like this. Would she have had the courage to tell someone what happened sooner? Would she have gone through all that extra unnecessary heartache? Probably not. Having a connection with someone (whether in real life or a character in a movie/book) can make all the difference. I remember as a teen that finding something I could identify with gave me not only comfort but strength as well.

You can read Laurie's response to Scroggins here, check out other authors and bloggers who have something to say on the matter here, and you can also check out the twitter hashtag #SpeakLoudly.

I hate the fact that Speak is being challenged but what better time to stand up and say this man is wrong, than banned book week.

Which brings me to my next thing. I have a gently used copy of Speak that I will giveaway at the end of banned book week. Just fill out this form by Midnight (Central time) on October 2nd. As with past contests I held on my review blog, you will have 48 hours to reply to my email and I'll pick another winner.