Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Banned Books Week 2008

It's that time of year again -- Banned Books Week. It actually starts on September 27th and runs to October 4th. According to the American Library Association, more than 400 books were declared morally objectionable by various interests, some from the left (to be fair) but the vast majority from the right. here are the top ten most challenged books for the last year, 2007:

10: The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky.
9: It's Perfectly Normal, by Robert Harris.
8: I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou.
7: TTYL, by Lauren Maracle.
6: The Color Purple, by Alice Walker.
5: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain.
4: The Golden Compass, by Philip Pullman.
3: Olive's Ocean, by Kevin Henkes.
2: The Chocolate War, by Robert Cormier.
1: And Tango Makes Three, by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell.

When we ban books, we suppress the imagination. We tell children they don't need an imagination, just their Bibles and their preachers who misinterpret them. It's time to say enough is enough and to vote out politicians who are against books and the arts and stop lining the pockets of those who support censorship in all its forms.

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3 comments:

Matt said...

Are you insinuating that the Conservatives are against books? That they want us all illiterate unable to read, only to get all our news and information from preachers?

Get a grip.

BlastFurnace said...

Matt, I did not mention the Con Party or Harper a single time in the post. I think anyone on the left or the right who would favour challenging books ought to be kicked out of office by the voters. Censorship is wrong no matter who advocates for it.

The Concordia incident a few years ago when students clashed over the appearance of Benjamin Netanyahu still rankles to this day.

But it's mostly those on the right that really take it over the top. One book not in the top ten this year but that is consistently challenged is "Are you there God? It's me, Margaret" by Judy Blume. It's challenged because the diarist gets a period. I guess it's because some Christians don't want their little girls to know that females GET periods.

I note that this book was challenged a fair bit when it was first published in 1970 but that the challenges skyrocketed after Reagan was elected. It's not Harper that's the problem, it's a bulk of his supporters hell bent on imposing their will on the rest of Canada -- and THAT's what worries me.

Bailey said...

I'm not really familiar with Olive's Ocean. I think I've heard of the rest.