Banned Books Week is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment. Held during the last week of September, Banned Books Week highlights the benefits of free and open access to information while drawing attention to the harms of censorship by spotlighting actual or attempted bannings of books across the United States.We are waiting for a few banned books that we requested to come in at the library. In the meantime, read my post about BBW from last year featuring the book, Draw Me a Star by Eric Carle. If you have not read this book, I definitely recommend it. We borrow it often and always enjoy reading it.
Check out the list of frequently challenged books and make it a point to read some of them. Don't let someone else dictate what you should or should not read!
7 comments:
I would agree that some aren't appropriate for young teens, but that doesn't mean they should never be read!
Annette - Exactly. I want to make my own decisions about what I read and what my children read.
I'm always so surprised by how recently people have try to ban books (like now!) and the reasons astound me, too. I find shows like "America's Next Top Model" WAAAAAAAY more objectionable than any of the books on the list. I remember reading To Kill a Mockingbird as a teenager and being incredibly moved by it. Being exposed to complicated subject matter through high-quality literature and thoughtful instruction is much better than some other ways I can think of. Besides, if we think school children don't already know about these topics we are deluding ourselves. (Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to say a 10 year old should read Beloved, but you know what I'm saying....)
As long as it's not a required reading I have no problems with certain books being in the library within reason (I'm not okay with playboy and the like being there, but that's a common sense thing).
Hmmmm, I could get lots of people really made by writing my thoughts on this.......
I am amused that US even has such a thing as "banned books". I always thought that the First Amendment is there to protect free speech. It's funny how many people think that it's their mission to "protect" other people from what they deem to be bad influence. We really enjoyed "And Tango Makes Three" last year - it's a great book that is written very well and beautifully illustrated too.
Banned Books Week is a hoax: http://tinyurl.com/Sowell
For example, no book has been banned in the USA for about half a century.
Banned Books Week is a hoax: http://tinyurl.com/Sowell
For example, no book has been banned in the USA for about half a century.
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