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Banned Books Week: Sept 30 - Oct 6, 2012
This year marks the 30th year of celebrating literature and the freedom to read it. Although I'm not currently reading a book that's on the list, seeing them on there only makes me want to read them more. :) I think that everyone should have the choice to read what they want. I am against censorship on a public scale; I believe that is a parent's job if they choose to do so. As a parent myself I would not want someone else telling my child what is appropriate or not appropriate for them as everyone's views on that subject vary greatly. Limiting access to something only fuels the desire to want it, read it.
This topic makes me sad on some level. Sad that some of the books on these banned or challenged lists are being limited in access a lot of times and that someone out there could need that story, that connection, to help them make it through a rough time. Do people really think that no one out there contemplates sex as a teen? Suicide? Mental illnesses? I'm not an expert, I would never claim to be, but I imagine some of the information in these books is tame compared to the information kids get from their peers. Books are a great way to take a break from reality, the stress of life. They are just stories, works of fiction (if you are reading fiction, of course) that help us escape to a world that isn't ours. They let you visit other places, sometimes places that really don't exist (which if you are taught the difference between reality and fantasy then you would know the likes of Harry Potter isn't real and therefore the 'magic' part would not be a reason to challenge or ban a book).
All in all, I love that we celebrate Banned Books Week. It gives us a chance to remember all those books that have touched our lives in one way or another, even if they aren't on the list currently. Someday they may be. One can only hope.
This topic makes me sad on some level. Sad that some of the books on these banned or challenged lists are being limited in access a lot of times and that someone out there could need that story, that connection, to help them make it through a rough time. Do people really think that no one out there contemplates sex as a teen? Suicide? Mental illnesses? I'm not an expert, I would never claim to be, but I imagine some of the information in these books is tame compared to the information kids get from their peers. Books are a great way to take a break from reality, the stress of life. They are just stories, works of fiction (if you are reading fiction, of course) that help us escape to a world that isn't ours. They let you visit other places, sometimes places that really don't exist (which if you are taught the difference between reality and fantasy then you would know the likes of Harry Potter isn't real and therefore the 'magic' part would not be a reason to challenge or ban a book).
All in all, I love that we celebrate Banned Books Week. It gives us a chance to remember all those books that have touched our lives in one way or another, even if they aren't on the list currently. Someday they may be. One can only hope.
There are two quotes that I like (because sometimes there's no reason to say something if someone else has already said it better)that I think apply well:
ReplyDelete"Censorship, like charity, should begin at home; but unlike charity, it should end there." ~ Clare Booth Luce
"We read to know we are not alone." ~ C.S. Lewis.
I don't know that that's the only reason we read, but it's definitly a powerful one, and how can we (or kids, or teens, or anyone) come to know that crucial truth if we limit the books that touch on the hard topics? We can't. Nothing puts us in the shoes of another like a book, the story of another person. It gives us a chance to see into the lives of others (both real and fictional) who are both like us and different from us. And that's sooo important for kids and even adults. Which is why we *need* books of all types.
Banned Books Week is a favorite of mine (book nerd and librarian that I am), and as I put up my own Banned Books Week display this year I felt such an appreciation for the fact that I *am* free in this country to read some of those books that have been controversial sometimes all over the world. Free to read them and to make up my own mind about what they're saying. Thank goodness for our freedoms and days that remind us to appreciate them!