In the fall semester, Banned Books week (starts Sept 24 this year) always falls around Unit 2--just as we are discussing some of the long term and large scale effects of reading.
It seems like an important moment to remember that literacy has not always been easy to come by--and still isn't in some places in the world. It also seems like a good moment to remember that many people, both through time and in the present day, have been/ are actively prohibited from learning to read. Some of those who can read have been / are actively prohibited from having choice about what they read. In this country, most book challenges are made in school libraries--ostensibly to protect children-- but worldwide, censorship at all levels is alive and well.
So read a banned book!
Or look at the lists of banned/ challenged books and see which ones you have already read.
banned books week, american library association
banned and challenged classics
challenged books by year (you'll be surprised!)
Those lists were really interesting.. I can't believe Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, and Twilight were on the challenged book lists. It makes me laugh that such massive literary hits actually have people that wish they would be banned (probably the AFA..). Especially since they are all child or young adult fiction books.
ReplyDeleteMy personal favorite banned book (at one time) would be '1984' by George Orwell. Although I can partially realize why that book would have been banned at one point.
We are lucky, that adults in this country can read pretty much anything. What always makes me laugh about the school challenges is that it usually creates enormous publicity--and sales-- for the challenged book. Of course, elsewhere, it's a different story. Thanks for reminding me of Hunger Games--I need to read that.
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