Celebrate Banned Books Week by exercising your right to read. 
Check out the list below of the Top 25 Banned/Challenged Books. Which ones have you already read? Which ones do you want to read? This is the perfect opportunity to choose a book from the list and find out what's inside that has everyone in such an uproar.1 Harry Potter (series), by J.K. Rowling
2 Alice series, by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
3 The Chocolate War, by Robert Cormier
4 And Tango Makes Three, by Justin Richardson/Peter Parnell
5 Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck
6 I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou
7 Scary Stories (series), by Alvin Schwartz
8 His Dark Materials (series), by Philip Pullman
9 TTYL; TTFN; L8R, G8R (series), by Myracle, Lauren
10 The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky
11 Fallen Angels, by Walter Dean Myers
12 It’s Perfectly Normal, by Robie Harris
13 Captain Underpants (series), by Dav Pilkey
14 The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain
15 The Bluest Eye, by Toni Morrison
16 Forever, by Judy Blume
17 The Color Purple, by Alice Walker
18 Go Ask Alice, by Anonymous
19 Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger
20 King and King, by Linda de Haan
21 To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee
22 Gossip Girl (series), by Cecily von Ziegesar
23 The Giver, by Lois Lowry
24 In the Night Kitchen, by Maurice Sendak
25 Killing Mr. Griffen, by Lois Duncan
List compiled by the ALA. Want to see more Banned Books? Check out the ALA website for the Top 100
As you look through the titles, keep in mind that this isn't an "All Time" list - oh no, this list is the most frequently banned or challenged books from 2000-2009! All of these books have been banned, or attempted to be banned in the last 10 years.
What is your opinion on banning or restricting access to books?
That's a surprising list! Granted, I have a feeling some of these books were only contested by small pockets of protesters, but it's still odd to think someone had it out for Captain Underpants.
ReplyDeleteI've read No's 1,5, 8, 13, 14, 16, 17, 18 and while I cannot imagine banning any of them, I can imagine restricting access for certain ages. (And I certainly wouldn't force anyone to read Steinbeck! LOL)
I think we do have some responsibility to our children to direct them toward age-appropriate materials (just as we do with music and movies) but certainly the definition of "appropriate" should be determined by their parents. And I do think communities in America should retain the constitutional right to vote yay or nay on materials their tax dollars pay for. But it needs to be the whole community and not some small, noisy faction.
Balance is always easier said than done! However, I think the best way to achieve that is to be educated. And what better way to be educated than through reading books?
Good points, Susan. It would be interesting to know how many of the attempts to ban these books were in a school setting.
ReplyDeleteOf all the authors on that list, Steinbeck is on my top 3 because of his clean, right to the point style:) But that gets right to the heart of the banned books topic...an author you dislike is one that I love, and we should be free to have our preferences instead of having our choices made for us.
You like Steinbeck, huh? Well, Rachel, I guess we can't be friends anymore.
ReplyDeleteJust kidding! That's what's so ridiculous about so many of these attenpted book bans. They are usually more about preference and less about anything that will actually hurt anyone. I may disageree with something or someone, but I should at least respect their God-given right to be "wrong".
And maybe, just maybe, if I take the time to read their words and really try to understand what they are saying, I might find out they are not nearly as wrong as I thought they were.
I've read 14, 19, 21 while in high school which was required reading in my 12th grade literature class. That was 1987. I never understood the power of Catcher In The Rye. But to each his own. There are many on this list that kind of surprise me for being on the list. Harry Potter? Never heard of it being banned/challenged. Nor May Angelou, Toni Morrison, Judy Blume, and Captain Underpants..huh? My daughter has that in her bookshelf right now. Interesting. I guess I should read some of these and find out what the big deal is. : )
ReplyDeleteHmmmmm that list is wild. LOL
ReplyDelete