Banned Books Week September 26 to October 3

BANNED BOOKS WEEK: SEPTEMBER 26 TO OCTOBER 3 What do The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, The World According to Garp, and Of Mice and Men have in common? They’ve all been banned. At one point or another, somebody (or a group of somebodies, as is often the case), decided that these books – and hundreds of others – should be removed from libraries and schools. And who decided that these somebodies had the final say over what lines our community bookshelves? Well, um . . . they did. Photo by DML East Branch I can’t imagine going through high school without Kurt Vonnegut or John Irving. Or being a ‘tween without Judy Blume. Or a college student without Flannery O’Connor or Toni Morrison. Or never reading The Kite Runner or Babbitt because somebody didn’t think it was right for me. Bill Maher calls it â€Å"legistlating taste.† Thomas Jefferson was â€Å"mortified† at the thought. Chuck Palahniuk called censored media â€Å"white noise.† Banned Books Week is sponsored by the American Booksellers Association, American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, and the American Library Association, just to name a few. And it has one purpose: to celebrate our First Amendment and our freedom to read (and write) what we want. Wanna join the celebration? Check out this list of banned books from the American Library Association, and pick up a banned book. Happy Banned Books Week!!