Monday, September 25, 2006

Banned Books

Hey! Did you know it is Banned Books week?? Go to the ALA website and check it out. This is the 25th anniversary of this celebration.

Here is the information about the most challenged books of 2005 from the ALA.
"The following books were the most frequently challenged in 2005:
The ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom received a total of 405 challenges last year.
A challenge is defined as a formal, written complaint, filed with a library or school requesting that materials be removed because of content or appropriateness. According to Judith F. Krug, director of the Office for Intellectual Freedom, the number of challenges reflects only incidents reported, and for each reported, four or five remain unreported.

The “10 Most Challenged Books of 2005” reflect a range of themes.
The books are:
“It's Perfectly Normal” for homosexuality, nudity, sex education, religious viewpoint, abortion and being unsuited to age group;
“Forever” by Judy Blume for sexual content and offensive language;
“The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger for sexual content, offensive language and being unsuited to age group;
“The Chocolate War” by Robert Cormier for sexual content and offensive language;
“Whale Talk” by Chris Crutcher for racism and offensive language;
“Detour for Emmy” by Marilyn Reynolds for sexual content;
“What My Mother Doesn't Know” by Sonya Sones for sexual content and being unsuited to age group;
Captain Underpants series by Dav Pilkey for anti-family content, being unsuited to age group and violence;
“Crazy Lady!” by Jane Leslie Conly for offensive language; and
“It's So Amazing! A Book about Eggs, Sperm, Birth, Babies, and Families” by Robie H. Harris for sex education and sexual content.

Off the list this year, but on for several years past, are the Alice series of books by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, “Of Mice and Men” by John Steinbeck and “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain."

I think I will go put in requests at my library for ALL of these banned books, they must be great if "they" don't want me to read them.... As soon as I finish 1984, which is usually on this list too.
Our high school library just had a fire (a malicious arson kinda fire), maybe I ought to donate all these to the library??? I hope that they put an Amazon wish list up so that people can help restock the library. Especially since Dear Son#1 is going to be a freshman there next year!!
My feeling is that libraries are precious and a foundation of our liberty.

1 comment:

Crafty Missus said...

arson in a library is cruel.
there was a jewish library attcked in montreal about two years ago. great fear and ignorance at its finest.
thanks for the list, i'll go have a look.