Read a Banned Book

There are four books on this list which I have not read.  Obviously I must put them on my Kindle.

This is banned books week (9/27-10/3), an annual event celebrating the freedom to read.  It focuses on efforts across the country to remove certain books from libraries and schools because some people find them offensive.

Who are these people and don't they have anything better to do?  A list of America's most surprising banned books include such books as "The Diary of Anne Frank," for sexually explicit passages, and in 1983 the Alabama State Textbook Committee banned it because it was "a real downer." God help us if we discuss the Holocaust in negative terms!
 
A specific illustrated book of "Little Red Riding Hood" was banned because the young girl is shown carrying wine in her basket of goodies for Grandma and rather than seeing the message that children should not talk to strangers, school officials in Culver City, CA saw the book's message as "alcohol is yummy."   The LA Times reported that "After reviewing the award-winning book from the state-recommended reading list for first-graders, Culver City Unified School District officials concluded that its message conflicted with the anti-drug and -alcohol theme they promote in the classroom."
 
"Hansel and Gretel" was banned because it "gives witches a bad name."
 
In 1952, "Charlotte's Web" was banned in Kansas because it was felt that humans are the highest level of God's creation and so any book featuring talking animals must be the work of the devil.  They felt it was sacrilegious and disrespectful of God.
 
And who would ever think that "Where's Waldo" would appear on a banned book list, but it does.  It was banned in Michigan and New York because there was "a sunbathing woman suffering a wardrobe malfunction the size of a pinhead in a corner of one of Martin Hanford's drawings."
 
Who is so dedicated to smut eradication that they would examine every page of a Waldo book to find something objectionable, and ban a book based on such a teeny tiny drawing.
 
The top banned children's book in the last decade is a book called "The What's Happening to My Body? Book for Boys," deemed inappropriate and banned in 21 school libraries in Texas, following a 2010 complaint by the father of an 8 year old who was shocked that his son could see this book. (I wonder if this Dad has taught his young son how to shoot a gun...?)
 
Even the dictionary is not free from complaint. School administrators in Alaska have banned both the American Heritage Dictionary and the Merriam Webster dictionary in schools and libraries for its "objectionable" entries — particularly slang words, including "bed," "knocker," and "balls."
 
I checked the list of books that are frequently challenged or banned.   They include books like "The Great Gatsby," "Catcher in the Rye," "To Kill a Mockingbird," "The Grapes of Wrath," "Beloved," "Of Mice and Men," "Farewell to Arms," "Gone with the Wind," "Call of the Wild," "Lord of the Rings," "Sophie's Choice," "Brave New World," "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," "The Sun Also Rises," and a host of others.  (You can read the reasons why these books were banned here.  It's an amazing list of reasons!)
 
I feel positively wicked...I think I have read every single one of those books.
 
Do yourself a favor and flout convention...read a banned book this week.

X-Rated

When I was growing up, my parents subscribed to the Catholic newspaper, which told of all the local news pertinent to San Francisco Catholics and also contained the Legion of Decency list, which told us which movies were OK for us to see.

I can't remember the first time I saw a movie on the "X" list (the bad movies), but I felt as guilty as I did the first time I attended an ecumenical service in a Protestant church.  Taking communion felt like I would be going to hell, but not following the example of my Newman Club peers was more important than sending my soul to hell for being inside a non-Catholic church.

My mother "religiously" checked the list every week, when we were choosing which Saturday matinee to see.  In the 1950s, movies which were condemned by the Legion of Decency included The Moon is Blue, I am a Camera, Baby Doll, Love in the Afternoon, Some Like it Hot, Never on Sunday, and Psycho.

(When I checked this list I discovered that Love in the Afternoon was taken off the list when a voice over by Maurice Chevalier was added to explain that Ariane and Frank were now married and living in New York.  The original version did not include the explanation and left it up to the viewer whether the two were married or living in sin.)

Given what a voracious reader I was then, it's probably a good thing that there was no Legion of Decency published for books.  I'm sure the list was available, but it just was not published in our Catholic newspaper, so my parents never checked it.

This is "Read a Banned Book" Week (Sept. 22-28), an annual event celebrating the freedom to read.  It focuses on efforts across the country to remove certain books from libraries and schools because some people find them offensive.

Who are these people and don't they have anything better to do?  A list of America's most surprising banned books include such books as "The Diary of Anne Frank," for sexually explicit passages, and in 1983 the Alabama State Textbook Committee banned it because it was "a real downer."

A specific illustrated book of "Little Red Riding Hood" was banned because the young girl is shown carrying wine in her basket of goodies for Grandma and rather than seeing the message that children should not talk to strangers, school officials in Culver City, CA saw the book's message as "alcohol is yummy."   The LA Times reported that "After reviewing the award-winning book from the state-recommended reading list for first-graders, Culver City Unified School District officials concluded that its message conflicted with the anti-drug and -alcohol theme they promote in the classroom."

"Hansel and Gretel" was banned because it "gives witches a bad name."

In 1952, "Charlotte's Web" was banned in Kansas because it was felt that humans are the highest level of God's creation and so any book featuring talking animals must be the work of the devil.  They felt it was sacreligious and disrespectful of God.

And who would ever think that "Where's Waldo" would appear on a banned book list, but it does.  It was banned in Michigan and New York because there was "a sunbathing woman suffering a wardrobe malfunction the size of a pinhead in a corner of one of Martin Hanford's drawings."

Who is so dedicated to smut eradication that they would examine every page of a Waldo book to find something objectionable, and ban a book based on such a teeny tiny drawing.

The top banned children's book in the last decade is a book called "The What's Happening to My Body? Book for Boys," deemed inappropriate and banned in 21 school libraries in Texas, following a 2010 complaint by the father of an 8 year old who was shocked that his son could see this book. (I wonder if this Dad has taught his young son how to shoot a gun...?)

Even the dictionary is not free from complaint. School administrators in Alaska have banned both the American Heritage Dictionary and the Merriam Webster dictionary in schools and libraries for its "objectionable" entries — particularly slang words, including "bed," "knocker," and "balls."

I checked the list of books that are frequently challenged or banned.   They include books like "The Great Gatsby," "Catcher in the Rye," "To Kill a Mockingbird," "The Grapes of Wrath," "Beloved," "Of Mice and Men," "Farewell to Arms," "Gone with the Wind," "Call of the Wild," "Lord of the Rings," "Sophie's Choice," "Brave New World," "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," "The Sun Also Rises," and a host of others.  (You can read the reasons why these books were banned here.)

I feel positively wicked...I think I have read every single one of those books.

Do yourself a favor and flout convention...read a banned book this week.

Read a Banned Book

The week of September 29 through October 6, 2007, marks the 26th anniversary of Banned Books Week, The American Library Association's annual celebration of the freedom to read.

This annual event serves to remind Americans not to take for granted their precious freedom to express one's opinions, even or perhaps especially when those opinions are unorthodox or unpopular. Libraries are deeply committed to the concept of Intellectual Freedom which includes both the right to believe what you choose and to express those beliefs and to have unrestricted access to information and ideas, regardless of the viewpoints expressed or the medium through which they are communicated.

If you desire, mention your favorite banned books in the guestbook of my friend Alan's blog page by 5pm Pacific Time on Sunday September 30th and he will include them in Monday's post "Banned Books Chosen By Readers Of This Blog". Choose your ten from the list of most frequently challenged books or Google "banned books" and you'll be amazed at how many lists you find!

In this day and age, when our freedoms are being whittled away, bit by bit, piece by piece, it's nice to think about how widespread censorship could really go.

I found a list of lots of banned books and chose some of my own in no particular order. I think it's good to remind ourselves of what people who want to censor our reading material

"I know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou has been questioned because of the graphic depiction of a rape. Must we now sugar coat everything? Is truth too offensive to allowed on our bookshelves? Should we not know that magnificent people can rise from the ashes of terrible, traumatic circumstances? The book has been removed from the required reading list in the Annapolis, MD school system.

"Of Mice and Men" by John Steinbeck, which is said to contain "racial slurs, profanity, violence and does not represent traditional values" The book is a beautiful story of friendship and platonic love between men, the caring of one for the other. What a crime it would be if this story were to be banned. (My very favorite Steinbeck book, "East of Eden" is also on a banned list.)

"Blubber" and "Are you There, God, It's Me, Margaret" by Judy Blume. I read all of the books Blume had written at the time that our kids discovered them because there was such controversy surrounding them. Blume treats subjects that kids deal with every day (in the first book, weight problems, in the second going through puberty, specifically getting your first period) in an open, frank, and honest way that appeals to kids. I'm sure many a child or young adult has felt better about him/herself after reading her books.

"To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee. What is it with the classics? There are those would would ban this book because of its honest depiction of race relations and, again, description of a rape. You don't make a lasting impression by shying away from difficult subjects. There is a reason why this is a treasured book (and why there is a statue in honor of Attacus Finch erected on the grounds of the Ulster County Courthouse in New York).

"Where's Waldo" Apparently this book is on the list because somewhere in one of the drawings, if you look hard enough, you can find a topless woman.


See her? Is this a reason to ban a book??? How sick a society are we anyway?

"Pillars of the Earth" by Ken Follett. I don't know why this one is banned. Magnificent historical novel of the building of a cathedral in England. Perhaps too much truth involved in the double-dealing of the clergy? I read it before going to tour Salisbury Cathedral and it greatly enhanced my enjoyment of that edifice and my understanding of the whole idea of towns growing up around the building of cathedrals or monestaries.

The state of Virginia wanted to ban "Ann Frank" because of sexually explicit passages (anybody remember those?) and the state of Alabama wanted it be banned because it was "a real downer." (From Forbidden Library: Banned & Challenged Books). Of course those two particular challenges were made in the 1980s. I hope we have progressed a little since then!

My favorite story from that site, though is the banning of The Bible: "William Tyndale, who partially completed translating the Bible into English, was captured, strangled, and burned at the stake (1536) by opponents of the movement to translate the bible into the vernacular. Beginning around 1830, "family friendly" bibles, including Noah Webster's version (1833) began to appear which had excised passages considered to be indelicate."

I guess you can find someone to object to everything if you search hard enough.

Go find a good banned book and flaunt your enjoyment of it!